Jharkhand to set up MSME directorate, increase subsidy to 40%: CM Hemant Soren

“The state government is setting up a separate directorate to promote MSME. Also the government is going to bring MSME Promotion Policy in which the capital subsidy payable on fixed capital in the MSME sector is being increased from 25 per cent to a maximum of 40 per cent,” stated the documents containing Soren’s talking points sent out by the CM Secretariat on the meeting.

The Jharkhand government told the NITI Aayog that its procurement policy is also being revised, giving ‘importance’ to the MSMEs and a draft of the new public procurement policy has been prepared for implementation. “With this, industries owned by weaker sections of the society such as women, SC/ST and Divyang entrepreneurs will get more benefits,” stated the document.

The government said that the policies are in extension to the suggestions that were given in the second national conference of Chief Secretaries to strengthen the MSME sector. As per the suggestion, the government is also developing District MSME Centers. “Efforts are being made to meet the needs of more than 2.8 lakh registered MSME industries by establishing coordination in the state and district,” the document stated.

The Jharkhand government has also told the Centre that the Forest Conservation Rules, 2022, has diluted the authority of the Gram Sabhas. “I want to urge you to reconsider this, otherwise the tribals and forest dwellers of Jharkhand will gradually become completely extinct. At present, the process of changing many provisions of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 is also going on…which are likely to cause huge damage to the environment in future. If the proposed amendment becomes law, the existence of forests will end even in states like Jharkhand which have saved forests. Therefore, there is a need to reconsider these amendments,” Soren said.