Fact Sheet

    The Ministry of Small Scale Industries & Agro and Rural Industries is the Nodal Ministry for policy formulation, promotion, development and protection of small-scale industries. It also monitors the implementation of these policies. The Ministry was created on the 14^th October, 1999. This puts the SSI sector in focus.

    The Ministry of Small Scale Industries & Agro and Rural Industries designs and implements the policies through its field organisations for promotion and growth of small and tiny enpterprises, including the coir industries. The Ministry also coordinates with other Ministries/Departments on behalf of the Small-Scale Industries (SSI) sector.

    Development Commissioner Small Scale Industries (DC SSI): The Office of the Development Commissioner (Small Scale Industries) also known as Small Industries Development Organisation (SIDO) is an attached office of the Department which assists the Ministry in formulation and implementation of policies and programmes for promotion and development of the Small Scale Sector. It inter-alia provides comprehensive range of common facilities, technology support service, marketing assistance through its network of 28 Small Industries Service Institutes, 30 branch Institutes, 2 Extension Centres, 4 regional Testing Centres, One Production Centre and 10 Field Testing Stations.

    Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC): The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) is a statutory organisation established in 1957 by an Act of the Parliament. It plays a pivotal role in the strengthening of the rural economy by promoting and developing Khadi and Village Industries. The objectives of the KVIC include skill improvement, employment generation in rural areas, transfer of technology, rural industrialisation and promotion self-reliance among the people and to build up a strong rural community base.

    The functions of the KVIC are to plan, promote, organise and assist in implementation of programmes for the development of khadi and village industries. The KVIC operates through 30 State/UT KVI Boards, 4969 registered institutions and 30,129 cooperatives, 188 departmental units and 15,441 sales outlets.

    National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC): The National Small Industries Corporation Limited is a public sector undertaking set up by the Government of India in 1955 to promote, aid and foster the growth of small scale industries in the country. NSIC helps the small scale industries through its various schemes such as hire purchase, equipment leasing, marketing domestic as well as export, raw material assistance, single point registration, etc. Under the hire purchase, NSIC supplies both indigenous and imported machines on easy hire purchase terms to SSI units.

    The Coir Board is an autonomous statutory body established by an Act of the Parliament under the Coir Industry Act, 1953 (45 of 1953) for the overall development of the Coir Industry. The Board consists of a Chairman and 30 members representing various interests like growers of coconut, producers of husks and coir yarn, manufacturers of coir products, dealers in coir, coir yarn, coir products, three members of the Parliament; two from Lok Sabha and one from the Rajya Sabha, representatives of Governments of principal coconut growing States etc.

    The Headquarters of the Board is located at Cochin. There are three Regional Offices one each at Bangalore, Visakhapatnam and Pollachi for promoting the development of the coir industry primarily in the brown fibre sector. The Central Coir Research Institute (CCRI) at Alleppey, Kerala and the Central Institute of Coir Technology (CCIT), Bangalore are engaged in research and development. The Coir Board has established 33 showrooms and Sales Depots in important cities in the country for promoting sale and consumption of coir products in the domestic markets.

    The SSI Board, under the chairmanship of Minister Incharge, Ministry of SSI & ARI provides a forum for interaction among its members in order to facilitate co-ordination and inter-institutional linkages and to render advice to the Government on various policy matters and development of the small-scale sector. The term of the Small Scale Industries Board is two years.

    The Board was last constituted on 26^th September, 1998 with 93 members besides the Chairman.

    The Industrial Policy measures announced in 1991 contained a special thrust on the promotion and strengthening of Small, Tiny and Village Industries. Under the package of measures announced, the investment limit for tiny industries was raised to Rs. 25 lakhs million and locational conditions were withdrawn . in 1997, there was a major upward revision in the investment limit in Plant and Machinery for the purpose of defining SSI and Tiny Sector units. The limit was brought up to Rs. 3 crore. But now, has been brought down to Rs. One crore recently in December, 1999.

    Performance: The steady growth of small-scale industries has been one of the most significant features of planned economic development. The small-scale sector has grown phenomenally during the last three decades and the sector has played and has potential to play a vital role in the fulfillment of our socio-economic objectives. The total number of small-scale units in the country in 1998-99 was 31.21 lakh, compared to 30.14 lakh in 1997-98. Value of production of small-scale units in 1998-99 aggregated to Rs. 5,27,515 crore.

(Source: Annual Report 1999-2000, Ministry of SSI&ARI, Government of India)

    The volume of employment in the small scale stood at 171.6 lakh as of end-March 1999. Exports from the SSI Sector accounted for about 35 per cent of the country’s total exports. In 1998-99, SSI exports valued at Rs. 49,481 crore, increased by 11.4 per cent over 1997-98.