MSME minister Giriraj Singh on Wednesday said the number of micro, small and medium enterprises in India has crossed 4.8 million as on July 12, 2018.

In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Giriraj Singh said MSMEs registered on Udyog Aadhaar Memorandum (UAM) Portal  from September, 2015 to  12th July, 2018 is nearly 48.40 lakh.

Out of which 43,18,841 are registered as micro, 5,00,942 as small and 19,766 as medium enterprises, he added.

He informed that the highest number of  7,70,871  MSMES registered are from Bihar  followed by Uttar Pradesh (5,96,036),  Delhi (5,88,483),  Maharashtra ( 5,70,101) and  Gujarat (4,86,080).

The number of  MSMEs registered from North-Eastern states, including Sikkim,  are 27, 722, with Manipur standing highest at 17,239.

MSME registration allows entrepreneurs the benefits from various schemes  like Credit Guarantee Scheme, Credit Linked Capital Subsidies Scheme, Lean Manufacturing Competitiveness Scheme, Micro and Small Enterprises Cluster Development Programme,   Scheme for Promoting Innovation, Rural Industry & Entrepreneurship, Revamped Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of  Traditional Industries, Design Clinic Scheme for MSMEs and financial support to MSMEs in ZED certification scheme, besides the schemes of other Ministries.

The minister informed that under the Public Procurement Policy, 358 product items have been reserved for exclusive procurement from MSEs.

Singh also informed the House that Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) is a credit linked subsidy scheme, for setting up of new micro-enterprises and to generate employment opportunities in rural as well as urban areas of the country through KVIC, State Khadi & Village Industries Board (KVIB) and District Industries Centre (DIC).

He said that recognizing the importance of MSME sector,  a recent ordinance has empowered the Government to provide the MSME special dispensation under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

The MSME minister said that to increase the registration at UAM portal the State Governments and industry associations have been urged through communication, interactive session over video conferencing.