Tumakuru tech centre for MSME caught in funding limbo

Four years after land was granted for an MSME technology centre in Tumakuru, the project remains stuck owing to administrative and funding issues.

The much-touted project for development of the MSME sector was only the second such centre to be proposed after the one in Bengaluru.

In 2017, about 15 acres of land was allotted for the project, to give a push to the MSME sector. The project was expected to come up with funding from the Centre. However, till date, no funds have been allocated from either by the Centre or the state government.

The MSME Technology Centre not only envisions training candidates who want to get into small businesses, but also looks at liaising with the industry. The one in Bengaluru, which is functional at present, handholds MSMEs in areas of product and process development, standardisation of processes and adopting new technologies among other services.

According to officials in the Commerce & Industries department, 15 acres were sanctioned by the government at Amarapura near Tumakuru in October 2017. The land was later transferred to the development commissioner, MSME, New Delhi for further development.

In 2018, the government sent a proposal to the Centre, seeking Rs 52.89 lakh towards architecture and other initial expenses for the project. However, there was no response from the Centre, officials said.

In January 2021, officials at the district industrial centre, Tumakuru, sought Rs 7.5 crore from the state MSME directorate to construct a building.

Meanwhile, officials have estimated that they would need a building built over 30,000 sq ft to set up the centre. “The Commerce & Industries department needs to hold a meeting to think through further steps,” an official said.

Speaking to DH, Tumkur MP G S Basavaraju, who has been following up with Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, said the state government was in a tight spot ever since the Centre changed its regulations.

“Unfortunately, the government of India has changed the mode of operations. The onus is now on the state government to provide the 30,000 sq ft of land, without which they are not going to start operations of the institute. This is very difficult, owing to the cost of land here. It will cumulatively add up to an estimated Rs 60 crore. So right now, a status quo is being maintained. The project has neither gone forward nor has it been shelved,” he said.