Invest Karnataka puts focus on MSMEs, small towns

Invest Karnataka 2016, has offered a large forum for the MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) sector, with government officials stating that many enquiries and proposals were received from industrialists during the meet, regarding the State’s offerings, while the delegates also got a chance to meet each other and discuss business.

According to Karnataka Industries Department Additional Chief Secretary K Ratna Prabha, a lot of MSMEs have been able to do business. “It’s not only as a government that we’ve been inviting business into the state, but also industry associations have also been active in doing so. Invest Karnataka is a forum for both, the government and industries. It was a great chance for MSMEs to interact with so many foreign participants,” Ratna Prabha told Deccan Herald on the sidelines of Invest Karnataka 2016.

Apart from the partner countries, several delegations came from other countries as well. “Each partner country had 50-70 delegates participating, which meant that not only the State, but also industries got business,” she added.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka State Small Industries Development Corporation (KSSIDC) also claimed to have received many enquiries from firms until Thursday, on availing land to set up businesses — ranging from manufacturing, electronics, to tourism.

“Till yesterday (Thursday), we received enquiries from many quarters, for requirement of 175 acres of land. Even foreign firms have shown interest and approached us,” KSSIDC Managing Director Mohammad Mohsin said.

The said 175 acres of land is spread across Karnataka, including in areas of Kalaburagi, Mangaluru, and Belagavi.

Ratna Prabha added that many participants are interested in towns beyond Bengaluru. “This time, many have shown interest in Mysuru and Chamrajnagar... We received a lot of good proposals for Hubballi and Dharwad, while Yadgir also got 2-3 proposals.”