After extensive stakeholder consultation, the national policy on micro, small, and medium-sized companies (MSMEs) is now ready for release, according to a senior government official.

"After extensive stakeholder consultations, an MSME policy has been developed. At the National MSME Conclave 2023 on Wednesday, MSME ministry secretary B.B. Swain said, "We are hopeful that we will be able to get it into the public realm fast.

According to Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma, minister of state for MSMEs, the industry is expected to experience rapid growth as a result of the numerous government initiatives introduced over the years. Verma continued by saying that the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) programme has assisted MSMEs in surviving economic crises. "We must produce locally, and our industry must also use locally produced goods. Global expansion for our MSMEs will result in a new India. In 2014, our economy was ranked 10th in the world. However, as of 2022, our economy has moved up to the fifth spot, according to Verma.

Regarding public procurement, Swain stated that the ministry had examined the reserve list of goods offered under the programme and a new draught list had been created that targeted MSMEs and a larger range of relevant goods. According to him, 36% of the target for MSMEs' procurement last year, which was 25%, was met.

The finance minister has included a record 221,380 million for the MSMEs ministry in the Union budget for FY24, which is more than the updated estimate of 156,280 million for the current fiscal year.

Additionally, the budget announced several initiatives to support MSME growth, including the renewal of the ECLG through March 31 and the 60,000 million-dollar Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) programme.

Data from the Reserve Bank of India show that as of 30 December, bank loans to MSMEs fell under the priority sector category and totalled 19.12 trillion, an increase of 11.6% from the previous year.

Due to its position as one of the main sources of employment, the small company sector, with its estimated 110 million employees, has also become more significant. These organisations account for 30% of India's GDP and 45% of exports, according to a report released in November by the consulting firm KPMG and the industry association CII.