Wet grinder manufacturing at a unit in Coimbatore. File
| Photo Credit: M. Periasamy

Festival season, when sale of kitchen equipment peak, does not offer hope for wet grinder manufacturers in Coimbatore.

Manufacturers of the grinders, a product that has Geographical Indication tag, are moving to other businesses as demand has slumped.

R. Soundarakumar, president of the Coimbatore Wet Grinders and Accessories Manufacturers’ Association, told The Hindu on Tuesday, September 26 that the demand used to peak from Dasara and go on till Pongal. The manufacturers in Coimbatore were selling more than one lakh grinders a month. “Now we sell just about 50,000 grinders a month and on an average the total sales is just 30% of what it used to be,” he said.

Of the nearly 200 end product manufacturers, only 80 – 100 manufacturers are continuing business. “The decline started more than six years ago when the government distributed grinders free of cost. We thought business will revive. But, one development after another – GST, COVID-19, etc – has led to complete fall of business,” he said.

‘Consumers now buy idli/dosa batter from shops’

There is no demand for wet grinders because of change in food habits and life style. Most of the consumers buy idli/dosa batter and do not grind batter at home. The demand has fallen across geographies.

The dealers ask for new models regularly. But, the manufacturers require nearly ₹13 lakh to make a die. With fall in demand and business, they find it difficult to make new models of grinders regularly.

Also Read | Wet grinder manufacturers seek support

Though the Central government is implementing from 2004 a cluster project for wet grinder and accessory manufacturers it is practically difficult to make dies through common facilities or take up common marketing, says Mr. Soundarakumar.

The issues that the manufacturers face include 18 % GST on the grinders and shortage in availability of grinding stones. “We have also not raised the issues much because there is no demand for the grinders,” he added.

The revamped credit guarantee scheme for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) will take effect from April 1, through infusion of ₹9,000 crore in the corpus, said Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman while presenting the Union Budget 2023.

“This will enable additional collateral-free guaranteed credit of ₹2 lakh crore. Further, the cost of the credit will be reduced by about 1%,” she said.

“Further, in cases of failure by MSMEs to execute contracts during the COVID-19 period, 95% of the forfeited amount relating to bid or performance security will be returned to them by government and government undertakings. This will provide relief to MSMEs”, the Finance Minister said.

The total allocation for the MSME Ministry will see a nearly 42% increase for 2023-24 with ₹22,138 crore to be made available compared to ₹15,629 crore in 2022-23. Schemes such as Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) and Scheme for Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries (SFURTI) will see significantly higher allocation compared to FY23.

The Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (FISME) and the Coimbatore District Small Industries Association (CODISSIA) said in press statements that to ensure MSMEs received payments on time, the Budget has proposed that deduction for expenditure incurred on payments made to MSMEs will be allowed for buyers only when the payment is actually made. This means buyers cannot claim deduction without paying the MSMEs.

The FISME added that setting up of a National Financial Information Registry will help create a robust information system and help MSMEs access loans. The Common Universal Identifier for businesses proposed in the Budget will also rid MSMEs of the need for having multiple identities, it added.