Jammu, March 30 (Scoop News)- Laghu Udyog Bharati organised an important one-day meeting in Jammu with the Jammu & Kashmir State Unit and industrialists. The meeting was addressed by Pawan Jindal, RSS Uttar Shetriya Sanghchalak, who interacted with entrepreneurs and discussed issues related to MSMEs in Jammu & Kashmir.
He was accompanied by Dr. Gautam Mengi, J&K Prant Sangchalak RSS; Surinder Mohan Gupta, Vibagh Sanghchalak RSS; Dr. Varinder Koundal, Seh Vibagh Karyawah RSS and Kamal Kumar, Vibhag Pracharak RSS.
The office bearers of Laghu Udyog Bharati present in the meeting included Parveen Pargal, National Working Committee Member & Prabhari J&K; Ankit Gupta, Vice President; Aagam Jain, General Secretary; Ishant Gupta, State Secretary (Finance); Pranav Gupta, Joint General Secretary; Rajinder Sadotra, Joint Treasurer; Rohit Verma, IT & Social Media Incharge; and Manoj Goyal, Kathua Unit President.
The meeting focused on detailed discussions regarding the New Central Sector Scheme (NCSS) and the concerns of MSMEs in Jammu & Kashmir.
Addressing the gathering, Pawan Jindal, RSS Shetriya Sanghchalak, highlighted the important role played by Laghu Udyog Bharati at the national level. He said that the organisation, with more than 65,000 members across the country, is one of the largest bodies working for the welfare of MSMEs. He said it is difficult for individual entrepreneurs to raise their grievances effectively at the highest levels of government.
He said that a national-level organisation has experienced teams and think tanks that study issues in detail and present them before the appropriate authorities in a structured manner. He urged industrialists to regularly inform the State Unit about local grievances so that matters requiring intervention at the central level, especially policy-related issues, can be taken up with the concerned authorities. He also assured that the issue of NCSS would be raised at the highest level of the Government for relief to eligible beneficiaries.
During the meeting, Parveen Pargal, National Executive Member & Prabhari J&K, informed the gathering about a recent meeting held in New Delhi with the Union Home Secretary. He said that Laghu Udyog Bharati, Jammu & Kashmir, submitted a memorandum demanding extension and enhancement of the NCSS so that all MSME units that applied before 30 September 2024 are granted full benefits under the scheme. He also demanded the announcement of a new 10-year industrial package for Jammu & Kashmir.
It was highlighted that after the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A, the Government of India announced an investment package of ₹28,400 crore for Jammu & Kashmir to be implemented over 16 years from 2021 to 2037. However, due to administrative delays, non-availability of developed industrial estates and delayed physical possession of allotted land, many genuine MSME investors could not complete registration within the prescribed time despite making investments and completing most formalities.
Parveen Pargal, National Executive Member & Prabhari J&K, further pointed out the unequal distribution of incentives under the scheme. As per official data, 953 MSME units received incentives amounting to ₹12,426.51 crore, while 18 large units received incentives worth ₹20,098.40 crore. As recorded in the minutes of the 4th Steering Committee meeting, nearly 67 per cent of the total incentives were availed by about 3 per cent of the units, leaving many MSMEs without support.
The memorandum also highlighted that several MSME units were allotted land on paper and payments were made, but physical possession was not given. At the same time, a new industrial area at Bagthali was developed where large investors requiring more than 200 kanals of land and investing above ₹200 crore were allotted land and registered under the scheme. This has created imbalance and concern among local entrepreneurs.
Laghu Udyog Bharati informed that, as per its data, 1,083 MSME units are still pending under NCSS and require incentives of approximately ₹35,000 crore. The delegation demanded that all MSMEs who made their first investment and applied before 30 September 2024 should be granted full benefits of NCSS without discrimination. It was emphasised that these investors have already incurred expenditure on land, pollution clearances, building plan approvals, bank loans, valuation reports, techno-economic feasibility reports and other statutory requirements.
Prominent industrialists present in the meeting included Rajesh Jain, Deepak Gupta, Bupesh Gupta, Manik Batra, and Suraj Bansal, Nitesh Gupta among others.
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