The UT administration on Tuesday faced ire of the union ministry of home affairs (MHA) for not implementing the Micro, Small and Medium Enter prises Development (MSMED) Act, 2006. The law is helpful for traders as it allows a wider array of activities on industrial plots besides manufacturing, and without paying any fee for it.
The MHA had convened the meeting with the Chandigarh administration and the city’s joint forum of industries, in which secretary, MSMED Act, was also present to resolve the ongoing stand-off. IS Chahal, joint secretary, UT, MHA, expressed displeasure over the Chandigarh administration’s failure to implement the Act which the central government had formulated with the objective of enhancing the competitiveness of enterprises.
UT director, industry, Mahavir Kaushik and joint secretary, estate, SK Setia reportedly had little to say when they were asked to give reasons for the non-implementation of Act, which has already been put in place by other states and union territories, including Delhi.
In the MSMED Act, the word ‘industry’ has expressly been replaced by ‘enterprises’, in which services along with manufacturing are allowed. Services activities under the Act include sale of motor vehicles, retail sale in non-specialised stores with food etc, retail sale via stalls and markets, hotels and motels, stores, warehousing, hospitals and motion picture projections. Before the MSMED Act came into being in 2006, only manufacturing was allowed in industries.
MHA joint secretary Chahal also questioned the UT officials on the awaited industrial policy, to which they stated that the policy was under consideration of senior officials of the administration.
{{/usCountry}}MHA joint secretary Chahal also questioned the UT officials on the awaited industrial policy, to which they stated that the policy was under consideration of senior officials of the administration.
{{/usCountry}}Trader’s delegation comprising Industries Association of Chandigarh (IAC) president Arun Mahajan, Chandigarh Chamber of Industry (CCI) president Sandeep Sahni; HS Mamik, chairman, industrial policy and MSMED Act, IAC; and entrepreneur Pankaj Khanna, also submitted their representation to the prime minister’s office.