'Resurgent Rajasthan Summit 2015' focuses on MSMEs

At the Resurgent Rajasthan Partnership Summit 2015 held in Jaipur, IndiaMART's founder Dinesh Agarwal touched upon the paradigm shift from the 20th century business philosophy 'Big is Better' to the 21st century focus 'Small is the New Big'. The presentation on the digitization of SME space in transforming the entire business gamut brought a favorable light at the conference with an aim to support and strengthen the SME community.

IndiaMART, India's largest online marketplace, connecting buyers and suppliers has been steadily bolstering the business clout of MSMEs through digital disruption.

The MSME sector in Rajasthan where the total investment of industrial units is over 1,800 crore generates employment for 76, 403 people. The state ranks 6th in India on World Bank's 'Ease of Doing Business' index according to the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion's (DIPP) report on "Assessment of State Implementation of Business Reforms".

As the state shares its border with five major Indian states such as Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, its industries have the inherent advantage of accessing a potentially enormous market opportunity.

Meanwhile, to ensure abundant availability of skilled human resources, Rajasthan is on a constant endeavor to build as well as support the growth of a robust academic infrastructure.

Dinesh Agarwal, Founder and CEO, IndiaMART said, "The internet is poised to be the key driver for the MSME community and we have stood on this pillar for around 2 decades to bridge the gap and make doing business easy."

"Though, only 26 percent of MSMEs are internet addressable at present, I expect nearly 25 million of them to get online by 2018. Programs like 'Make in India' can succeed only if these small businesses, that are the backbone of our economy, get wider access to markets using e-commerce platforms," added Agarwal.

He also said that being a voice of the e-commerce industry, the summit will fous on investment environment and opportunities in the state. Being a major business hub for a lot of small and mid-sized businesses, it is perfectly poised to reap the opportunities offered by the e-commerce revolution.

The changing focus to 'Small is the New Big', reflects upon the innovative, dynamic, tech- savvy and progressive India. MSMEs that have adopted the internet have achieved 19 percent annual growth and 27 percent more revenue growth, 49 percent more profits and 7 percent more customers if compared to offline SMBs.

However, at a time when MSMEs contribute 8 percent to the national GDP and employing roughly 130 million people across the country, it is imperative to understand the impact of going digital.