There is no dearth of schemes meant for the micro, small and medium enterprise sector. The MSME ministry alone offers close to 58 of them, and if we add to them those offered by other bodies such as NSIC, KVIC, and Coir Board the list will get much longer. But compared to this the awareness level about these schemes and programmes is very poor. The local industry offices do little to spread awareness and guide even those entrepreneurs who approach them for support. As a result, implementation of the schemes suffers. This needs to be changed.

Recently, the Odisha government has decided to initiate a mass awareness drive to address this challenge. According to media reports, the MSME secretary of the state already has notified the managers of district industries centre (DIC) to roll out the drive, which is to be followed by entrepreneurship and skill development programmes at the district level. In addition, the officials have been directed to compile all orders relating to credit, technology, revival of sick units and marketing support to the MSMEs and failure to complying with the direction will attract disciplinary action for the officers concerned. This is a praiseworthy step, needless to say.

I think the Centre should also step into a bigger role in this direction. Till now, hardly any efforts have been made towards spreading awareness among the country's MSME units about the schemes available. Most of the existing policies and programmes are not implemented in proper spirit. Lack of information about schemes, lack of knowledge of bankers and officials about them, rejection of applications on unfair grounds, paperwork, red tape, delay in sanction of loans ... these are some of the common problems which have never been addressed, making it difficult for MSMEs to benefit from the schemes.

Similar problems are faced by small exporters. There is lack of information not only about the available schemes but also about various important aspects of international trade, such as changes in international and domestic trade, market development, taxation, logistics and supply chain management, international payment and transaction, overseas marketing operation, technology transfer, international collaborations, market research, business management skills, etc. In the background of this, the government should undertake a massive drive to create awareness about the available schemes and provide a one-stop platform that can serve all-round information needs of the SMEs.

I invite your opinions.