MSMEs are the engine of the State’s industrial development and in the last four years the State government has provided over ₹1,400 crore in subsidy across categories to over 19,000 MSMEs companies, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin said on Thursday.
“It was the DMK government in 2008 that for the first time in the country issued a separate policy for MSME. We also launched a separate loan guarantee scheme specifically for Tamil Nadu in 2022 and have offered over ₹7,578 crore in loans so far,” he added.
The CM was speaking at the inauguration of ACMEE ’25, a machine tools exhibition organised by the Ambattur Industrial Estate Manufacturers Association (AIEMA). The five-day exhibition focuses on the latest in machine tool technology to help industry modernise and promote investment in India.
New hub sought
Speaking at the event, RSS Satish Babu, President, Ambattur Industrial Estate Manufacturers Association (AIEMA), said the industrial hub houses over 2,000 companies across various manufacturing sectors and has created employment for over 3.5 lakh people. “For the first time this year in ACMEE, we are also having a buyer-seller meet for PSUs, Defence and Railways organisations,” he added.
He also put forward a request to the CM to support the expansion of Ambattur Industrial Estate. “We are seeing increased business opportunities but do not have the capacity to meet them. We request for your support to create a new hub for us within 50 km of the Ambattur Industrial Estate and spanning around 1,000 acres,” he added.
The CM said he will consider the request and urged MSMEs to adopt new-age technologies to help in industrial development of Tamil Nadu.
The theme for ACMEE 2025 is Beyond Smart Manufacturing and it will focus on the use of information technology in machinery to monitor production processes, automating manufacturing and the use of data analytics to improve manufacturing efficiency. There will also be live demonstrations, technical sessions and product launches.