Many small investors interested in setting up shop in the state claim that there is no guarantee that the projects will be realised even after MoUs are signed with the state.
Highlighting the plight of small investors when compared to their larger counterparts, Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) claim that the Department of Industries has no time to spare for them, even though tall promises are made to facilitate the ‘labour intensive’ sector. “We are small investors but employ a considerable number of the local workforce, told an SME entrepreneur to Express.
The SME complained about the issue to Large Industries Minister Murugesh Nirani and Small Scale Industries Minister Narasimha Nayak during the Global Investors Meet 2012. Many demanded that the sector (SSI) be given a separate secretariat. Speaking to Express, Narasimha Nayak had stated that the decision for a separate secretariat would be announced by Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda soon after GIM. However, no such announcement have been made yet.
With many refused a meeting with the state government representatives in the recently concluded GIM-2012, many find themselves in a fix. “We cannot afford to leave the state and move our projects due to our small investments,” said members of SME. In GIM-2012 MoUs worth nearly `75,000 crore were signed by the SMEs.