MSMEs generated 5.87 lakh employment in 2017-18

Nitin Gadkari informed the upper house that MSMEs are the largest provider of employment after agriculture.

New Delhi: Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Nitin Gadkari on Monday said that Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises MSMEs generated 5.87 lakh employment in 2017-18.

In a reply to a question in Rajya Sabha, he said, “Under the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP,) the estimated employment generated (number of persons) in micro enterprises during the years 2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19 are 3.58 lakhs, 3.23 lakhs, 4.08 lakhs, 3.87 lakhs and 5.87 lakhs, respectively” Gadkari said.

The minister informed the upper house that MSMEs are the largest provider of employment after agriculture.

“As per the 73rd Round of National Sample Survey (NSS) conducted by  National Sample Survey Office, Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation during the period 2015-16, the estimated number of workers in unincorporated non-agriculture MSMEs in the country engaged in different economic activities excluding the MSMEs registered under (a) Sections 2m(ii) of the Factories Act, 1948, (b) Companies Act, 1956 and (c) Construction activities falling under Section F of National Industrial Classification (NIC), 2008, are 11.10 crore”.

He also said that MUDRA and START UP schemes have been initiated by the government for facilitating self employment. In order to improve the employability of youth, Ministries/Departments run skill development schemes across various sectors.

Government has also implemented the National Career Service (NCS) Project. Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Protshahan Yojana has been initiated in the year 2016-17 for incentivizing industry for promoting employment generation, Gadkari said.