Gadkari asks govt to allow export as PPE production hits 800K units a day

MSME Minister Nitin Gadkari on Saturday said he has requested the Commerce Ministry to allow export of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits, as the country is producing it in large quantities.

Addressing a webinar on the occasion of International MSME Day, Gadkari, who also holds the portfolio of Road Transport and Highways, said about two months ago that India imported PPE kits from China via a special aircraft but now the country's industry and MSMEs were manufacturing thousands of PPE kits per day.

"Now, already I have requested the commerce ministry" to allow export of PPE Kits from India, the minister said, adding that it was being considered. Stressing that PPE has export potential, he said that people are getting orders for PPE kits from Dubai, Canada, the US and European countries.

Recently, Indian apparel export industry body AEPC had also urged the government to lift the ban on exports of PPE kits as its production has reached 800,000 units per day.

Gadkari also launched the report of the GAME National Task Force for MSMEs, entailing industry-wide recommendations to boost the units and entrepreneurial dynamism in India.

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Kongkal Sangma; Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and Punjab Minister of Education and Public Works Vijay Inder Singla also spoke on the steps their states were taking to boost the MSME Sector, which contribute about 48 per cent of India's exports and provide employment to 11 crore people.

The recommendations from the report Improving Economic Dynamism and Accelerating MSME Growth are likely to help MSMEs 'Survive, Revive, Thrive and Sustain'.

The task force chaired by K P Krishnan, IAS (Retd), Former Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and co-chaired by Ravi Venkatesan, Founder GAME and Former Chairman of Microsoft India and Bank of Baroda presented the highlights of the recommendations.

The report covers the central and state governments, private sector and industry associations, and cover short and suggests medium-term actions and long term strategies that will create an environment where MSMEs can flourish.

The task force has also made a case for localised and simplified communication of government schemes, access to finance for first time borrowers, an enabling business environment through simplification, digitisation and decriminalisation of compliances, strengthening MSME associations and creating dynamic local entrepreneurial ecosystems.