The National Small Industry Day is an annual celebration observed on 30th August. It is dedicated to promoting small businesses nationwide and offering job opportunities to the unemployed. In addition, the day is celebrated to boost the overall growth potential of small industries. National Small Industry Day is a way to offer balanced growth between small and large-scale corporations. India has more than 6.3 crores Ministry of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME), contributes 45% of the total exports, and can access international markets. This special day is responsible for supporting the setting up of new industries and increasing the state’s financial condition.
History and Significance of National Small Industry Day
In August 2000, the Ministry of Small Scale Industries launched a comprehensive policy package for the Small Scale Industries (SSI) sector to provide exceptional support to the small firms in India.
- The SSI Day was designated to commemorate the effort to provide balanced support to existing small, medium, and large-scale enterprises, set up new industries, and uplift the country’s financial health.
- On 30th August 2000, the Ministry of Small Scale Industries held an SSI convention in New Delhi where national awards were given to the best industries. Since then, the Central Government has made a special effort to establish small-scale enterprises across India.
- The National Small Industry Day marks the importance of small-scale enterprises in creating work opportunities for individuals in rural and urban regions.
- This is because small businesses are labor-intensive and units of capital engaged in them retain a higher proportion of employment. Furthermore, it helps inequitable allocation of economic power.
Types of Small Scale Industries
The national small industry day is typically celebrated to motivate small-scale industries in India, whether in the manufacturing or service sectors. They are categorized into five types given below.
Role
Manufacturing Industries
Producing complete reports for direct consumption and also for processing industries.
Examples include the Coin, khadi, food processing, power looms, engineering industries, etc.
Ancillary Industries
Producing parts and components utilized by large industries.
Examples – Industries of automobiles, railway engines, and tractors.
Service Industries
Cover light repair shops are necessary to maintain mechanical equipment and are practically machine-based.
Examples – Banking, communications, wholesale, retail trade, engineering, and computer software development.
Feeder Industries
Specializing in distinctive types of products and services.
Examples – Casting, electroplating, welding, etc.
Mining or Quarries
These are extremely diverse.
Examples – mining of fossil fuels (coal and lignite mining, oil and gas extraction), quarries (digging sand or stone), mining of metal ores, etc.
Small-scale industries in India
The main purpose of coming up with the Natural small industry day is to support small-scale industries in India. Under this, manufacturing enterprises are constantly growing due to the increasing demand of people and the natural supply of raw materials. There are around 21 small-scale industries in India, and more than 7500 products are manufactured. Below are some of the small enterprises running in India.
Small-scale industries in India
Paper Products and Printing
Food Products
Electrical and Machinery Parts
Wood and metal products
Cotton clothes
Chemical Products
Beverages and Tobacco
Leather and Leather Products
Rubber and Plastic Products
Important Facts about National Small Industry Day
Small-scale industries refer to those industries where manufacturing and production are done with limited resources. According to the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006, an industry is a small enterprise if the investment in the plant and machinery is more than Rs. 25 lakhs but does not exceed Rs. 5 crores.
- The small-scale industry in India accounts for almost 40% of the total goods and services produced and employs people across the nation.
- India’s export industry is significantly dependent on small enterprises. These industries manufacture nearly half of the goods exported from India.
- In June 2020, the government approved the upward revision of the MSME definition. This was done in line with the government’s primary focus on energizing MSMEs in the country.
- Under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat Package, the government added composite criteria of investment and an annual turnover in the definition of MSME.
- The government also launched the Self-Reliant India (SRI) Fund to facilitate equity financing of Rs.50,000 crore in the MSME sector and help grow and expand MSMEs in India.
- Other initiatives to promote MSMEs include Udyam Registration, National SC-ST Hub (NSSH), Champions Portal, and the Establishment of Enterprise Development Centers.
- Udyam is an online registration procedure provided to MSMEs to simplify registration without any documentation and fees. The National SC-ST Hub is a scheme launched to promote entrepreneurship culture in the SC-ST community.
- The Champions portal is a platform that facilitates a single-window solution for all of MSMEs’ needs and provides a platform for their grievances, encouragement, and support.
The Ministry of MSME established 102 Enterprise Development Centers across India to build a network of entrepreneurs and provide professional mentorship and support to existing and aspiring MSMEs.
FAQs about National Small Industry Day
Q.1 What is National Small Industry Day?
The National Small Industry Day is devoted to supporting and promoting small industries in India. It is an annual celebration that lets us recognize the importance of small industries in our society. The day encourages small industries to grow by offering them job opportunities and hence promoting the development of the country’s economy.
Q.2 When did National Small Industry Day begin?
The Ministry of Small Scale Industries held a Small Scale Industry Convention for Entrepreneurs and memorialized National Small Industry Day on August 30, 2001, in New Delhi. In addition, a comprehensive policy package for the small-scale industry sector got launched on August 30, 2000. It aimed to provide substantial support to small firms in India. The Ministry subsequently agreed that August 30 would be designated “SSI Day.”
Q.3 What industries can be registered under SSI?
Small-scale industry registration can be acquired by both manufacturing units and service rendering enterprises. The industries that can be registered are – Micro Enterprises, Small Enterprises, and Medium Enterprises, depending on the investments in plants, machinery, or equipment.
Q.4 What is the objective of National Small Industry Day?
The Main Objective of National Small Industry Day is to promote small businesses across the nation and to offer job opportunities to the unemployed. The central government has made numerous efforts to launch small-scale enterprises across India so that more people can get jobs. The National small industry day emphasizes creating new work opportunities for individuals in rural or urban areas. Small corporations are motivated as they are labor intensive and utilize less capital than medium or large enterprises.
Q.5 What are the characteristics of SSI?
The national small industry day is celebrated to improve the growth of small-scale industries (SSI). The characteristics of SSI include single ownership, management control under the owner, flexibility, limited reach, use of locally available resources, depend more on labor, and hence provide more employment opportunities to people.
