Mr. C.V. Sankar, Additional Chief Secretary, Industries Department of the Tamil Nadu Government, lighting the lamp to inaugurate the second edition of SOUMEX 2014 in Chennai. Others (from left) are Mr. C. Muthusami, President, TANSTIA, Mr. P. Udayakumar, Director (Planning & Marketing), NSIC, Mr. Ravindra Nath, Chairman and MD, NSIC, Mr. Boopathy, Director – Planning & Projects, NLC, and Mr. K. Gopalakrishnan, TANSTIA,
The National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC) and TANSTIA, the apex body representing the interests of 10 lakh MSMEs in Tamil Nadu and other southern States, jointly organised SOUMEX 2014 in Chennai recently. The main objective of the international exhibition in sourcing and manufacturing was to showcase the capabilities of MSMEs in Tamil Nadu to meet the ever-increasing requirements of different manufacturing sectors, particularly automobile manufacturers and Tier-1 suppliers to these industries. It was also aimed at facilitating sourcing of products, components and services from MSMEs in Tamil Nadu and the neighbouring States.
Chennai is the chosen destination for leading auto majors for outsourcing components. The ongoing expansion of these auto majors has triggered a good business potential for all the auto ancillary companies. While the major requirements of these majors are met by Tier-I, II and III companies, they in turn source their requirements from a host of micro, small and medium enterprises.
In his inaugural address, Mr. C.V. Sankar, Additional Chief Secretary, Industries Department of the Tamil Nadu Government, observed: “Tamil Nadu has been leading the nation in terms of the number of factories, MSMEs, entrepreneurs, exports and FDI inflow. In 2012-13, the number of entrepreneurs filed in the State was 90,000, which increased to 1,16,000 in the consecutive year. The State remains strong in industrialization and has the capacity to grow stronger in the coming days. According to VISION 2023, the State proposes to take a few strategic initiatives to strengthen the manufacturing sector by 12-14 per cent year-on-year, and to make SMEs vibrant.”
He said that the State Government has launched several programs, including the setting up of the Entrepreneurship Development Institute in 2001, which has so far trained over one lakh entrepreneurs. With the largest number of engineering colleges and other technical institutions as compared to other States, Tamil Nadu has produced almost a million engineering and ITI graduates. It has also proved a leader in areas like infrastructure, power and broad-band connectivity.
In his special address, Mr. Kumar Jayant, Secretary, MSME Department, Tamil Nadu Government, said: “The Employment Guarantee Scheme for Urban Areas and the NEEDS Scheme in Tamil Nadu cater to the fund requirements of entrepreneurs to help them enter the MSME sector. With a huge population, we need such people who can help generate jobs for others. Tamil Nadu has also been awarded the Best Supporting State for MSMEs for 2013-14 by the SME Forum of India.”
Mr. Jayant also stressed the need for exploring new sectors like Defence where MSMEs can play a significant role.
Mr. Ravindra Nath, Chairman and Managing Director, NSIC, New Delhi, in his presidential address, said that, being the biggest employment provider, next only to agriculture, MSMEs are regarded as the backbone of the Indian economy.
The exhibitors in SOUMEX 2014 included public sector undertakings like NLC, BHEL, IAF, OFT, Railways and ICF, and private organisations like TVS, Brakes India, Schwing Stetter, Wabco, India Cement, Ramco Cements, etc.
The show is not only expected to create new business opportunities for MSMEs but to take up new technologies and adopt lean manufacturing practices. About 8,000 MSMEs are expected to benefit from the exhibition.
Picture taken at the release of the E-version of the SOUMEX exhibitors directory