The number of people employed by MSMEs having Udyam registration under the MSME ministry has increased 5.3 times since the launch of the Udyam portal by the government back in July 2020, according to the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) under the Finance Ministry in its latest monthly economic report.
"The total number of persons employed in MSMEs Registered Under the Udyam Registration Portal was 2.8 crore in July 2020, and it stood at 15.3 crore as of 9th February 2024, 5.3 times increase, as the number of MSMEs registered in the Udyam portal rises steadily", the report said highlighting the measures undertaken by the government in boost employment generation by MSMEs.
As of February 26, the total employment reported by Udyam-registered MSMEs was 15.6 crore including 3.89 women employees, as per data from the Udyam portal. The DEA noted that the revision in the definition of MSMEs has provided ease in doing business and promoted investment and employment. Moreover, the launch of the Emergency Credit Link Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) has eased liquidity problems of MSMEs, leading to a reduction in their Non-Performing Assets (NPAs).
In addition, the Government e-marketplace (GeM) has aided increased market access to Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs), thereby providing inclusive access to local MSEs, the department said. From the earlier definition based on investment up to Rs. 10 crore in plant and machinery, the new definition was notified on June 1, 2020, to cover enterprises with turnover up to Rs. 250 crore and investment up to Rs. 50 crore under the MSME ambit.
In terms of NPA, as per the latest Financial Stability Report by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released in December 2023, the quality of the MSME portfolio of scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) has further improved in the first half of the current financial year. The gross non-performing assets (GNPA) in MSME portfolio of banks dropped to 4.7 per cent in September 2023 from 6.8 per cent in March 2023 and 7.7 per cent in September 2022. In March 2022, the GNPA ratio was 9.3 per cent.