MSME sector added jobs after demonetisation, says Nitin Gadkari

The Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Nitin Gadkari on Thursday gave a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha saying that 4-5 lakh jobs have been added annually for the past three years in the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sector post demonetisation. This statement comes after the Opposition has been attacking the Modi government for destroying numerous jobs in the MSME sector.

Gadkari's reply

According to the Minister's response, under the Prime Minister's Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), the estimated employment generated (number of persons) in micro-enterprises during the years 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19 has been 4.08 lakh, 3.87 lakh and 5.87 lakh, respectively. This data shows that around 4-5 lakh jobs were created every year, even during the demonetisation year and in the two years following that.

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The government has been attacked several times by the opposition and there is a general impression that the MSME sector has gone through pain, the data is to the effect that jobs have not been lost and there has only been some addition to jobs, although substantial.

Similarly, the share of MSME in India's GDP has also remained more or less the same in the last three years. According to the reports by Central Statistics Office (CSO), Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MOSPI), the share of MSME in All India GDP during 2015-16 and 2016-17 and 2017-18 has been 29.5 per cent and 29.3 per cent and 29.7 per cent, respectively. Even the share in exports has remained constant. 

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In the Parliament, Gadkari in reply said that as per the reports by Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCIS), the share of MSME related products in total exports during 2016-17, 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20 (Apr-Aug,2019) has been 49.69 per cent, 48.56 per cent, 48.10 per cent and 49.66 per cent, respectively.

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