The Punjab Government has launched the ‘Punjab State MSME Awards’ to felicitate the MSMEs, who have registered tremendous business growth and displayed excellence in product quality. Deputy Commissioner Mr Pradeep Kumar Agrawal informed that this initiative had been taken in line with the vision to recognise and promote the visionary spirit of the entrepreneurs of Punjab. He stated that all the eligible units can submit their online applications till October 31, 2019 by 5:00 PM on the Punjab Bureau of Investment Promotion (Invest Punjab) portal –http://investpunjab.gov.in/
The Deputy Commissioner said that the applications would be evaluated on the growth rate demonstrated by the unit (in areas such as investments in plant & machinery, direct employment, annual turnover/sales, direct exports), and product quality (evaluated through ZED certification, credit ratings, quality certifications). The holistic application also gives due credit to MSMEs adopting energy saving measures, focusing on employee welfare measures and promoting women in workforce participation. The detailed evaluation guidelines and instructions for application submission are available on the website, he added.
Seeking online applications for the Punjab State MSME Awards under Industrial and Business Development Policy (IBDP) 2017, he said that these are open to all the Punjab-based MSMEs operating in the Agro & Food processing, Automobiles & Auto parts, Textiles, Engineering, Pharmaceuticals, IT & Electronics, Sports, Hand tools, and Leather Industry. To be eligible for the State recognition, the MSMEs should have been in continuous production since the last three years (became operational on or before April 1, 2016) and should have a permanent SSI registration/ Udyog Aadhar Memorandum (UAM) under the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (MSMED) Act 2006.
He also informed that under this award scheme, the winning MSMEs would receive a cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh each and a Certificate of appreciation. The winners will be felicitated during the ‘Progressive Punjab Investors’ Summit being organized by the Government of Punjab at the Indian School of Business (ISB), Mohali campus on December 5-6, 2019.
In total, the Government envisions the distribution of 18 awards, equally split across all the above nine industry sectors. Two awards will be given in each of the sectors – one to the Micro/Small Enterprises and one to the Medium Enterprises. The Government had identified MSMEs as the engine for the socio-economic growth of the State and the backbone of the rising industrial development in Punjab.
Under the IBDP, the State identifies MSME as a key sector and thereby extending attractive fiscal incentives, at par with the large units. The landmark initiatives of the state included the availability of Power at Rs. 5 per unit to all MSMEs, the execution of Make in Punjab Procurement Policy which gives preferences to the local MSMEs in Government procurement, the establishment of District Level MSE facilitation councils, the launch of Cluster Development Programme and the support offered to the MSMEs through the Infrastructure Development Fund.
