This need for information has come to be felt even more keenly by the small enterprises, whether they are already in operation or still in the stage of idea formation. An aspiring enterprise maker needs to be informed – well informed – about so many things: technology, machinery, equipment, finance, suppliers, distribution, personnel and so many other issues. Only when suitably equipped with information regarding all these can the entrepreneur make her/his plans for enterprise. 

Getting accurate information used to be a sweaty business for small entrepreneurs, as for many others. This should not be so. In a democracy, information should be easily available for the asking. The Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005 is the result of this perception by the Government of India.

How does RTI Act help, if those who are in charge of information are not willing to part with it? The Act has been framed precisely to take care of such a corner. A democratic public sovereignty pre-supposes free and easy availability of information. In fact, Article 19(1) on Freedom of Expression (Fundamental Rights) in our Constitution subsumes the right to information. Now, through the RTI Act, this right has been given an explicitly legal form: the Act makes non-compliance with a request for information punishable. Besides, it stipulates a time frame for disposal of the request too. This is a great consolation for all concerned.

The basic principles of democracy require that the conduct of government, and its every act and function be transparent, efficient, accountable, predictable, and has public participation. The RTI Act ensures that these principles are reflected in all governmental activities and good governance is practised. What is good governance but understanding the needs and of common people and communicating in their metaphor so that they can effectively participate in the governmental programmes, and motivate others to follow suit.

As of now, access to information is mainly limited to urban areas, in spite of technology revolution and improved connectivity. Only twenty per cent of the information percolates to rural areas. It is a sad state of affairs, but there it is. The RTI Act, 2005 will go a long way in narrowing this rural-urban divide, in terms of information accessibility. The media have a very important role here, especially considering that over thirty per cent of the complaints have come through the media.

The United Nations also lays emphasis on good governance – governance that is free of corruption, therefore transparent – particularly in the developing countries. Because, it is felt that the implementation of government schemes often does not reach the needy due to deep-rooted corruption at different levels. A well-informed community would be well equipped to raise its voice against wide-spread irregularities in implementation. The RTI Act empowers the common people this way, so to speak.

The inclusion of penalty and appellate mechanism streamlines the Act on the one hand, and suggests the endeavour to change the mindset of officials, especially among the bureaucracy.

Also, the stipulation that certain categories of information must be published in the world-wide web through Internet, provides for wide and easy access. In the context of SMEs, comprehensive and exhaustive information regarding the governmental schemes is important as well as relevant to the entrepreneurs. This would enable them to exploit it for expanding or diversifying the existing business, or modernising it. It would even guide a first generation entrepreneur to plan and start up a new enterprise.

The benefits to entrepreneurs from free access to information are innumerable. It would help them expand their markets, tap international markets, enhance the exports, comply with internationally acceptable quality standards, introduce new designs and product lines, adopt good manufacturing practices, substitute cleaner eco friendly technologies and practices – generally speaking, easy access to information would enable them to become more competitive. This would, in turn, facilitate their integration with global value chains.

Today's knowledge has a different texture and a different temperature. It is always rushing past you or gate-crashing into your well organised domain. Besides, today knowledge and products emanating from knowledge are high bracket. If you try to put a cash label on the value addition in 'K'-products, it can bust your imagination and make you dizzy. Knowledge and K-products are intellectual properties (IP) – very valuable assets. There is a gamut of rights (IPR) attached to them and laws governing them. What is the stuff that makes knowledge? From a purely practical utilitarian point of view, any skill, craft, talent or competence can be called knowledge.

Coming round to MSMEs, most of them hardly have any perception of IP or IPR. Especially in the rural and micro sectors this ignorance is pervasive. But, to live and transact in the K-society, to do business, ply a trade or practise a profession without getting the products or ideas pirated and hi-jacked, every enterprise maker has to be sufficiently aware of these concepts. Or else, one fine morning the entrepreneur may find an X-company distributing the product of his/her creation and minting money, while they watch with wonder from the wings.

In fact, this is the reason why our village crafts-persons and micro artisans remain poor: they get exploited and cheated because of their ignorance though their skills and artistry are of proven charm and charisma. There is only one workable solution to this situation: awakening the rural and micro entrepreneurs to the present day realities, and fortifying them with necessary assistance and guidance to protect the assets built of their creative imagination. It requires foresight, strategic and well-planned programme implemented through a clearly visualised approach.

ni-msme has long been concerned with this crux and evolving interventions to reach out to MSMEs, especially the rural and micro entrepreneurs. Mainly, we aim at creating awareness among the micro and small entrepreneurs – individual as well as clusterised entitites – regarding IP and IPR, their right to claim their ideas and creations as their properties and the need to protect that right, to watch out for trampling or encroaching upon it and what steps should be taken to establish their claim in case piracy does happen.

The Government of India is also concerned about the need for IPR awareness creation assistance mechanism vis-à-vis the MSMEs. Visualising the importance of intellectual property rights in the new knowledge based economy, the government has initiated a number of awareness and training programmes, advisory and consultancy services and schemes of financial assistance. Also, an apex institution has been established called the National Intellectual Property Organisation (NIPO), in New Delhi. NIPO works to promote IP culture and introduce prudent IP management practices while protecting the interests of our entrepreneurs in the transition to uniform IP laws in the knowledge-driven global scenario, thereby providing them with an insurance against the loss of market share.

Our first initiatives began early around the turn of the millennium, and include customised as well as regular ones. The demand for the former and response to the latter have been very encouraging.

It is fit to say a word regarding our most recent IPR intervention – a 5-day workshop on Training the Trainers in IPR (13-17 Aug.). A sponsored event, it was organised in collaboration with World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), for officers of organisations under MoMSME. The delegates were from DC (MSME), NSIC, IIE, NIESBUD, Coir Board and ni-msme. Dr. Prabuddha Ganguly, the IPR expert of international repute, was the personage behind the inputs. The programme was unanimously praised both for its content and structure.

Good news for MSMEs: a 5-member group has been formed at ni-msme with core faculty. Based on their knowledge from earlier progammes enriched by the experience of the present workshop, they have drawn up an action plan for the Institute's activities in IPR in the near future. They include awareness creation, information dissemination and identification of BDS providers in IPR. I invite all the enterprise friends to benefit from these services.

      Let us say, Hail Knowledge!

We in India have been building our economy brick by painstaking brick, over the sixty years of independence. In many spheres we have made huge strides; we have scored proud achievements. Yet, we must admit the sorry fact that large chunks of our population continue to live in utter deprivation and ignorance. Mostly, these people reside in the rural parts and comprise the communities belonging to scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, and women. The primary task of the Government is to empower these groups, and facilitate them to be partners in the process of nation's development.

The Government of India has formulated a gamut of schemes to pull the weaker sections out of the morass of poverty. (SC, ST, OBC, minorities and women are considered as weaker sections.) Mere formulation of schemes is not enough to fetch the desired result. In order to achieve a high rate of growth speedily, these communities must be motivated to create enterprises, and their efforts monitored through regular follow up and finger-holding. Accomplishing the task would require a visionary at the helm.

After Dr. Chandra Pal has assumed the office of the secretary to the Government of India (MoMSME), he made “inclusive growth” a credo and provided scope for promoting entrepreneurship among the weaker sections.

In all the government schemes – infrastructure, EDP, marketing, finance, tool rooms, technology, etc. – the SC/ST are well represented. In case of EDPs and tool rooms, scrupulous care is taken to maintain the SC/ST coverage at 15 per cent and 7.5 per cent respectively. Following the MSMED Act, entrepreneurship development among the weaker sections generally and SC/ST particularly, has been receiving close attention. New schemes too are on the anvil for these groups, wherein 60 per cent of the funds are expected to be directed to the SC/ST segment. In the current FY, Rs. 73.80 crore is the share of the weaker sections as per the planning commission approved budget estimates. The MoMSME has brought out a booklet entitled Schemes/Programmes for Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes Beneficiaries, indicating the total budget provision and the exact share earmarked for the SC/ST in each of the support programmes of the ministry, channelled through the DC (MSME). In short, the MoMSME has initiated an SC/ST sub-plan, to monitor and ensure that the due ratio is strictly implemented in every respect in the case of SC/ST.

Enterprise creation by the weaker sections will solve in one stroke the dual problem of unemployment and poverty. Not only the entrepreneur makes a profitable and fulfilling living for himself or herself, but they will also create livelihood opportunities for half dozen others.

ni-msme is ready to take up activities that would help these groups. With its long experience in the field of entrepreneurship development, and follow up activities like monitoring, hand-holding, escorting, counselling, training and capacity building related to enterprise creation and sustenance, the Institute has its finger on the pulse of entrepreneurial needs.

Personally speaking, my own enthusiasm about entrepreneurship promotion is never ending. Especially in the context of SC/ST groups, I have had first-hand experience in promoting entrepreneurship among their groups during my tenure as General Manager of A.P. Scheduled Castes Finance Corporation during 1995-98. I have been able to accomplish the start-up of about 10,000 new enterprises by motivating and capacitising the educated unemployed SC youth through training them in business skills. Further, I had also organised skill development training for about 60,000 youth to enable them find full/part employment in big private companies.

From the insight gained through this hardy field experience, I can emphatically say that the outcome of any efforts in this direction (of entrepreneurising the weaker sections) would reach the expectations only if: 1) the emphasis is on promoting first generation entrepreneurs, and 2) the entrepreneurs are selected from traditionally non-business communities. Policy and programme interventions to orientate them in this direction, of course, are a must for speedy economic development and social balance.

The war veterans of the world countries know only too well the mad man-made devastation wrought by a war not just on the economy but on the psyche as well. The countries victimised by the Second War gained this insight in a hurry and sought for an autonomous international mechanism that could control the war lust of individual nations and avert crisis and calamity. The result was the emergence of the international body – the ubiquitous United Nations Organisation, widely referred as 'the UN', on 24 October 1945. The gutting out of Hiroshima and Nagasaki put a fast seal on its declaration.

The 50 countries that signed the charter of the United Nations in 1945 are the original members, the five that ratified it being the permanent members. Later, many other nations signed up as members, with the current membership being 192. Almost every independent nation state is a member of the UN. The stated aims of the United Nations are to maintain international peace and security, to safeguard human rights, to provide a mechanism for international law, to promote social and economic progress, improve living standards and fight diseases. The UN provides the opportunity for countries to balance global inter-dependence and national interests when addressing international problems. Toward these ends it ratified a Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.

To underscore the charter importance, in 1947 the General Assembly of the UN passed a resolution stating that 24th October shall be officially called the United Nations Day, to be devoted to making known to the people of the world the aims and achievements of the United Nations in building world peace, and to enlisting their support for its work. It was also perceived that the general public should be informed about the content and purpose of the United Nations; therefore an entire week – the United Nations Week – was set aside in October, 20-26, with UN Day as the centre of focus.

The various arms of the UN envelope almost every facet of human life and society: WHO for promoting health; ILO to ensure well equated work and wages, and to campaign against child labour; UNESCO to encourage scientific and cultural pursuits; UNIDO to boost industrial enterprise; UNDP for economic development; UNICEF to ensure basic security for children; and so on.

Our Institute has a long history of association with several organs of the UN: UNIDO, UNDP, UNESCO, ILO . . We had signed MoUs; we had worked in collaboration; we had had agreements; we had executed projects for them. We had the privilege of holding the UNESCO chair. We had participated in the ILO's IPEC - International Programme on Elimination of Child Labour. 

Right at present, we are promoting the UN model of cluster methodology for promoting and face-lifting the micro and small enterprises in the rural areas, in the artisan sector, in handlooms and handicrafts, as also in urban manufacturing sectors. The approach is proving to be successful and efficacious, and is gaining wider popularity day by day.

My personal perception is that the war-lust instincts and energies of humankind should be diverted into the creatively competitive channels of enterprise creation, product innovation, technological inventions, and market competition. Such battle and aggression will lead to the building up of individual prosperity, national wealth, achievement satisfaction, social purpose by making life more comfortable all round – all of this through peaceful means, without the wasteful shedding of even a drop of blood.

The sixty-two years since the UN has come into existence have progressively been scaling down the threat of unpredictable and meaningless violence to human folk around the world, simultaneously improving the accessibility of health and decent living conditions for all.

We at ni-msme, on this day every year, with our national and international groups on the campus, participate in the celebrations and revive our pledge to strive for poverty alleviation and empowerment of the poor through the peaceful and profitable means of enterprise promotion.

On this solemn occasion, let us all reiterate our commitment to furthering the spread of peace through striving for the expansion of wealth and elimination of poverty.

They might also have been improvisations devised to overcome some frequently occurring problem/difficulty, or to put to good use large quantities of waste material. As the need fulfilment capacity of the activities gained recognition, they acquired status and expanded, and the avocations became lucrative full-time vocations. In modern times, these traditional activities came to be known as cottage industries. In time, they moved away from home location, but continued to retain the label “cottage”. 

Every country has its legacy of such traditional crafts. Prior to the arrival of modern methods of machine culture and mass production, these native skills fed the community needs which, in turn, gave livelihood to the skill donors. This symbiotic relationship amongst the local communities made them into a cohesive and contented society.

India, being such a huge and ancient country endowed with rich cultural diversity, each of its territories is renowned for some exquisite skill. After the political independence, the cultural significance and the economic potentiality of these enterprise skills have been recognised and they were brought in the purview of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), a statutory body created in April 1957, by an Act of the Parliament, under the Ministry of Agro and Rural Industries (MoARI) of the Government of India. Since then, the KVIC Act has been amended three times, in 1967, 1989 and 1994. With the merging of the MoARI in the Ministry of MSME (MoMSME) recently, the administration of KVIC has come under the wing of MoMSME now.

The strength and relevance of cottage and village industries in today's context come from their dependence on local skills and resources, for example, palm leaf fans, hand-made paper and products, village pottery and decorative pottery (terra cotta). Their products are essentially directed to meeting the local needs and demand. Their use of simple technologies, therefore simple machinery/equipment and, because of these factors, their low investment levels make them an attractive choice for rural enterprise proliferation. Besides, they are eco friendly, which is the most important attribute in the present day scenario of environmental concern. It is the task of KVIC to motivate the rural folk towards enterprise creation in this sector.

The charm and glitter of automated products, coupled with social transformation due to technological advances, urbanisation and deforestation have marginalised and de-vitalised these wonderful crafts. Though scores of our traditional crafts have fallen into extinction, scores more are clinging on with feeble life. One of the main objectives of the KVIC is to develop self-reliance among the rural communities and strengthen their rural spirit by providing them with the opportunity for creative and productive activities through the start-up of enterprises under KVIC and helping them in design development, achieving quality standards for competitiveness and value addition. The range of functions of KVIC includes assisting the village and cottage enterprises/ entrepreneurs, rescuing the dying traditional crafts by pumping new energy into them through skill up-gradation and financial assistance, thus facilitating them to enhance the marketability of their products, as also training them and building their capacity.

That is where ni-msme enters the picture. In fact, the relationship between ni-msme and KVIC runs into the deep past. Over the past decade the bond has grown particularly stronger. The expertise and experience ni-msme has accumulated over the past half century in the area of MSMEs and in training as such, has made this match a perfect fit.

Prominent among the recent interventions the Institute has designed for the KVIC are programmes on: cluster development for KVIC officials; management development for KVIC executives; effective office secretaries; human resource management practices; export marketing; management of retail outlets; and, Right to Information Act, 2005. Evidently, all the themes are of current relevance. Many more programmes are in the offing.

Cottage and village industries are at the heart of Indian economy. Their contribution comes in silence, without ado. Millions of people earn their livelihood through these enterprises. On the off-side, they are the silent ambassadors of our culture and tradition, icons of our creative talent. Charkha is the symbol of the national spirit, gifted to us by beloved Bapuji. And Khadi is the fabric of our national solidarity. ni-msme is guided by the spirit of Bapu's ideal, and strives to further it at every step.

ni-msme, which was well known as nisiet until recently, has been having international linkages far ahead of even a remote anticipation of the concept of global village. In fact, it is the first organisation of the then Ministry of Industry (Govt. of India) to have offered an international programme in the field of MSME promotion. Down the decades, the Institute has executed a number of projects and designed several customised interventions in the areas of research, consultancy and training for the Asian and African neighbours. These are apart from and in addition to the regular gamut of international training programmes offered every year under the sponsorship of MEA.

The customised programmes have been mostly part of memoranda of understanding with the respective countries or their organisations, executed in partial fulfillment of our country's bilateral cooperation agreements with them. The most recently executed of such interventions was for Ghana. For Mauritius, we have designed project profiles for their SME development organisation SMEDO, and a vision document for their Women and Child Welfare department.

The Institute has had understanding not only with countries and country-based organisations, but with reputed international organisations as well. The most important among such organisations are AARDO and CIRDAP. By way of these organisations, we have shared out the Indian experience to the developing economies in topics of current relevance such as MSME promotion and women empowerment, through need-based projects in the areas of training and research. We were also associated with ILO's Child Labour Eradication Project, and had organised educational programmes in IT for Sudan. The emphasis throughout has been on enterprise development (ED). Further, ni-msme will continue to focus on offering ED services to developing economies.

In the context of developing countries, studies have repeatedly revealed that micro enterprise (ME) is the economic pollinator, and is the best strategy and solution for bridging regional imbalances and economic disparities, bringing down poverty level by hitching up the household income, as also for engaging women in income generating activities without taking them away from their home-yard. They attract low investments and ask for low cost technologies; hence do not call for a high educational profile. Therefore MEs are eminently suitable for economic mainstreaming of the deprived, disadvantaged and socially weak segments, and illiterate and semi-literate groups. Yet, in the international nomenclature, ME has no distinct identity. India has not only admitted the ME as an important entity in its own right, but has even legalised its status by fixing parameters and framework for it. However, it is not enough to recognise and promote ME; it is equally important to put in place a mechanism to keep track of the ME operating and ME starting up. In this wise too, India has been a step ahead. It has monitoring mechanism in place in all the sectors in which ME are prolific. In order to spearhead this philosophy, the Institute has initiated a range of training programmes for the developing economies.

A background paper to WASME's Global Conference on Micro Enterprises, around the turn of the millennium, has identified three areas – credit, training, marketing – as the main areas of need vis-à-vis the ME. Of these, training has been, from the beginning, one of the strong areas of ni-msme. The paper emphasises three kinds of training as important: basic training, in-plant training and management training.   All the three kinds are within the purview of the Institute. For decades, we have been offering both customised and off-the-shelf interventions with focus on capacity building and skill development. In fact, our interventions have applied complexion rather than the theoretical.

Standing in a ferment of change, we are on the look out to take off in new directions. Some of the considerations are network oriented extension, market driven, sector based training, business incubators, computer based consultancy, empowerment of ME clients through customised capacity building initiatives, and awareness creation and skill imparting in dealing with micro finance (MF). Access of MF being an imperative to ME promotion, competence and efficiency in handling MF related issues are essential to promotional agents of developing countries.

Both for boosting the economy as well as perking up the ME profile, cluster development approach has proved to be effective. Based on the industrial districts model of Italy, this approach has gained momentum in the past decade, and is being supported by UNIDO. ni-msme has already made a record of providing hand-holding and counseling services to over 20 clusters in the country. Besides, has also been offering training and orientation programmes for cluster development agents and executives of the developing countries. 

In the ensuing year, we look forward to promoting ME in a big way, especially through a big push to cluster development activities. The Institute has arrived at a determined strategy to spread the message of development globally, but more particularly among the developing countries.

My greetings and best wishes for a happy 2008, to all the readers, stake-holders, members of ni-msme and users of our services.