SME conclave at IIM Lucknow

A conclave titled ‘India SME Conclave’ organised by IIM-Lucknow in association with the Indian Industries Association (IIA) and Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) was held at the IIM campus. It focused on low cost financing options and the impact of Free Trade Agreements on the SME sector in India.

The conclave witnessed the participation of academicians, practitioners and representatives of the polity. A panel discussion with participants like Mr. Pravir Kumar, Joint Secretary, MSME and other dignitaries from IIM-Lucknow and IIFT, delved on the impact of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Free Trade Agreement (ASEAN FTA) on the Indian SME sector. Effect of previous FTA with Thailand, Srilanka and Singapore, concerns over the upcoming ASEAN FTA and the benefits of having access to larger markets were discussed.

Many speakers emphasised the need to innovate for improving the scale of operations of the current SMEs. It was also discussed that the industry associations must communicate with the government to help avert detrimental decisions regarding the upcoming FTA.

The representatives of banking institutions like Mr. Chaubal of SBI and Mr. Gunasekharan of SIDBI etc informed about various products that they have designed specifically for the SMEs to reduce the cost of financing. Venture capitalist and investors suggested areas of improvement to SMEs to enable them to obtain funds from alternate sources at lower costs.

The conclave acted as a platform wherein the industry players posed their concerns and got instant solutions from eminent personalities and experts.