The micro industries in Coimbatore district, numbering more than 20,000, are awaiting details on the SME Growth Fund that was announced in the Union Budget this year.

J. James, president of the Tamil Nadu Association of Cottage and Tiny Entrepreneurs, said the fund name denotes that it is for the small and medium-scale units and the micro units may not have any benefit from the fund.

According to C. Sivakumar, president of the Coimbatore Tirupur District Tiny and Micro Enterprises Association, there are no details of how the fund will be distributed to the MSME sector and what it can be used for.

While the micro units that do job work for larger industries are seeing a jump in orders, the high cost of raw materials is affecting viability of operations. The government support is essential for the micro units now, he added.

President of the Coimbatore District Small Industries Association V. Rangaswamy said the SME Growth Fund will benefit the entire MSME sector. Industries that want to take part in trade fairs, visit international fairs, support buyers coming to India for reverse buyer-seller meets and so on will get financial support under the scheme. If an industry delegation, including micro unit owners, want to visit an industrial fair in another country, they can avail of financial support under the SME Growth Fund. Hence, the scheme will give major benefits to the sector, he said.

The Principal Commissioner of GST and Central Excise, Coimbatore, Dinesh P. Rao Pangarkar, inaugurated a three-day raw material exhibition in Coimbatore on Tuesday (October 6, 2026).

The exhibition at the CODISSIA Trade Fair Complex is organised by the Coimbatore District Small Industries Association (CODISSIA) for the fifth time and aims to give multiple raw material options for the Micro, Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (MSMEs) at the right prices.

D. Sridhar, chairman of the event, said warehousing, logistics, and material handling were also covered in this industrial expo for the MSMEs. The objective is to open up more avenues for purchase of raw materials to the industries of the region while giving exhibitors an opportunity to showcase their products to a large set of potential industrial buyers.

The participants who have stalls in Hall A are from five States apart from those in Coimbatore and 30 % of the 75 plus participants are direct manufacturers of raw materials. The event, which will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the three days, is supported by the Indian Lead and Zinc Development Authority, Metal and Stainless Steel Merchants’ Association, Materials Recyclers’ Association of India, and the Federation of Freight Forwarders’ Association.

President of the CODISSIA V. Rangaswamy spoke about the support from the GST Commissionerate in Coimbatore for issues related to the MSMEs.

Coimbatore’s Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), already reeling under higher prices of diesel, furnace oil and LPG, are facing mounting pressure from a sharp rise in the cost of key raw materials such as steel, pig iron, copper and aluminium.

The Joint Council of Associations of Coimbatore, in a memorandum submitted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said the “acute and unprecedented” increase in raw material prices was placing severe stress on MSMEs.

While Wholesale Price Index (WPI) data indicate fluctuations and even a decline in steel prices, actual market conditions remain “adverse”, the council said. Steel prices have risen by around ₹8,000-₹10,000 a tonne between August and September this year, it added.

The council urged the government to constitute a Price Monitoring Committee for steel to track availability and prices and prevent hoarding, cartelisation and abnormal price increases.

It also sought withdrawal of applicable import and safeguard duties on steel for six months and deferment of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) requirements and Quality Control Orders for imported steel until March 2027.

To address shortages of non-ferrous metals, the council called for measures to encourage imports of copper and aluminium scrap. It also urged the Union government to take measures on a “war footing” to secure copper and aluminium scrap from the European Union through engagement with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

The council further sought the fixing of a Maximum Retail Price (MRP) for essential raw materials to prevent arbitrary price increases.

It also urged the Ministry of Steel to explore setting up a SAIL depot in Coimbatore to ensure easy and timely availability of quality steel to MSMEs in Coimbatore and neighbouring industrial regions.

In Coimbatore, one of the main MSME clusters in the country, price of copper has shot up by almost 75% in the past one year. One kg of copper now costs ₹1,450 as against ₹800-₹900 a kg last year.

The prices had touched ₹1,500 a kg earlier in the year and softened only recently.

With MSMEs in Coimbatore manufacturing automobile components, electric vehicles, pumps, renewable energy components, electronic parts, and so on, the high price of copper is eroding the competitiveness of the engineering industries.

The U.S. and China are the major consumers of copper globally, and India imports almost all its requirements. In the recent months, use of recycled copper is on the rise because of the prices, said industry sources here.

V. Rangaswamy, president of the Coimbatore District Small Industries Association, said if the price hike was less than 10%, the units would have absorbed it fully. With over 60% increase, however, the MSMEs were able to pass on [to the customers] just 10%-15% of the rise in copper prices. Along with it, prices of steel and zinc have also gone up.

“MSMEs fix the pries once in a year or once in two years. Hence, they are unable to pass on the hike fully to the customers. Further, it is not just the price of copper. Cost of all petroleum-based products have also seen a hike. These have eroded the competitiveness of the MSMEs,” he said.

Schemes such as raw material banks were not helpful in these situations as copper was precious and could not be stored in bulk, he added. “Copper is like gold now. Even if a small quantity is lost, the MSMEs will stand to lose,” he said.

Jayakumar Ramadas of Mahendra Pumps said use of copper coated wires is becoming common in many pumpsets manufacturing units. “We tell our customers whether the wires used are copper or copper coated and have priced the pumps accordingly,” he said. According to him technology will evolve gradually around use of copper-coated products for industrial use.

In Coimbatore, one of the main MSME clusters in the country, price of copper has shot up by almost 75% in the past one year. One kg of copper now costs ₹1,450 as against ₹800-₹900 a kg last year.

The prices had touched ₹1,500 a kg earlier in the year and softened only recently.

With MSMEs in Coimbatore manufacturing automobile components, electric vehicles, pumps, renewable energy components, electronic parts, and so on, the high price of copper is eroding the competitiveness of the engineering industries.

The U.S. and China are the major consumers of copper globally, and India imports almost all its requirements. In the recent months, use of recycled copper is on the rise because of the prices, said industry sources here.

V. Rangaswamy, president of the Coimbatore District Small Industries Association, said if the price hike was less than 10%, the units would have absorbed it fully. With over 60% increase, however, the MSMEs were able to pass on [to the customers] just 10%-15% of the rise in copper prices. Along with it, prices of steel and zinc have also gone up.

“MSMEs fix the pries once in a year or once in two years. Hence, they are unable to pass on the hike fully to the customers. Further, it is not just the price of copper. Cost of all petroleum-based products have also seen a hike. These have eroded the competitiveness of the MSMEs,” he said.

Schemes such as raw material banks were not helpful in these situations as copper was precious and could not be stored in bulk, he added. “Copper is like gold now. Even if a small quantity is lost, the MSMEs will stand to lose,” he said.

Jayakumar Ramadas of Mahendra Pumps said use of copper coated wires is becoming common in many pumpsets manufacturing units. “We tell our customers whether the wires used are copper or copper coated and have priced the pumps accordingly,” he said. According to him technology will evolve gradually around use of copper-coated products for industrial use.

The Coimbatore District Small Industries Association (CODISSIA) has urged the State government to classify dry agricultural land as industrial land for better development of both agriculture and industry.

In a memorandum to Minister for Industries S. Keerthana, CODISSIA president V. Rangaswamy said parcels of industrial land were reclassified as agricultural and residential land in the Coimbatore Master Plan 2041. The government should restore the industrial use classification for such land parcels. Further, more land should be reserved for industrial use to support the future growth of Coimbatore.

The Guidance Tamil Nadu processes building approvals only for projects with investments above ₹50 crore. This facility should be extended to all projects that have minimum investment of ₹50 lakh, he said. This will enable MSMEs to get approvals faster, he added.

With complaints that banks are reluctant to finance small and medium industries in Udupi district, Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Prateek Bayal on Monday directed them to extend financial assistance to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) for working capital and other needs.

Chairing a district-level bankers’ committee meeting at Rajatadri in Manipal, Mr. Bayal asked the departments concerned to work towards enhancing the confidence of MSMEs in the district. He said over 15,000 MSMEs were operating in the district, including cashew processing, marine products and ready-to-eat food units. He also said women’s associations seeking financial assistance from banks to undertake self-employment should be given the necessary support.

The CEO said farmers should be given time to register under the weather-based crop insurance programme. If technical problems are found, they should be resolved immediately to ensure insurance coverage.

He said banks play an important role in delivering central and State government schemes to the public, and officials should function properly. Department and bank officials should guide beneficiaries of loan schemes appropriately.

Improve CD ratio

Stating that the credit-deposit ratio in the district was 48.99% last year, against the Reserve Bank of India’s prescribed norm of 60%, he asked banks to extend more loans and facilities to beneficiaries of housing, education, self-employment and government schemes.

Target exceeded

Canara Bank Deputy General Manager and Udupi Regional Head Mahamaya Prasad Roy said banks in the district exceeded the annual credit plan target of ₹15,514.08 crore by lending ₹17,191.28 crore, or 110.81%, in 2025-26 to both priority and non-priority sectors.

Giving sector-wise target achievements, Mr. Roy said ₹4,738.22 crore was disbursed against the target of ₹4,230.28 crore in the agricultural sector, ₹3,709.94 crore against ₹3,712.58 crore in MSME, ₹168.75 crore against ₹187.07 crore in education, ₹270.92 crore against ₹510 crore in the social infrastructure sector, and ₹407.77 crore against ₹395.31 crore in other sectors. In the non-priority sector, ₹7,890.36 crore was disbursed against the target of ₹6,474.31 crore, or 121.87%.

District Lead Bank Manager G. Harish, NABARD Deputy Divisional Manager Sangeetha Kartha, RBI Assistant General Manager Nisha Thakur and others were present.

Andhra Pradesh Minister for MSMEs, SERP, and NRI Empowerment Relations, Kondapalli Srinivas, has welcomed the Centre’s decision to introduce the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) 5.0 to support the industries affected by the ongoing conflict in West Asia.

In a statement issued on Friday, the Minister said the scheme would ensure crucial financial assistance for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) by extending additional credit facilities backed by a Central government’s guarantee.

He said the initiative would help industries overcome liquidity stress and strengthen their operations amid the global uncertainty.

Andhra Pradesh currently has around 20.77 lakh MSME units. Of these, about 4.98 lakh units, constituting nearly 24 per cent, are engaged in the manufacturing sector, while nearly 10 lakh units, accounting for 48 per cent, operate in the services sector. Another 5.74 lakh units, representing 28 per cent, are involved in business and trading activities.

Mr. Srinivas said the ECLGS 5.0 scheme offers 100% credit guarantee coverage for MSMEs in the event of loan default, while non-MSME sectors would receive up to 90% guarantee coverage.

Eligible borrowers can avail of additional working capital assistance of up to 20% of the highest working capital utilised during the fourth quarter of the 2025-26 financial year. Under the scheme, each borrower can receive additional loans up to ₹100 crore. The scheme will apply only to loans sanctioned before March 31, 2027 and disbursed by June 30, 2027, he said.

The Minister clarified that only borrowers maintaining regular repayment records with banks and financial institutions would be eligible for the scheme.

He added that the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Limited (NCGTC) would independently implement and monitor the programme. Mr Srinivas urged MSMEs affected by the West Asian crisis to utilise the facility to strengthen their businesses.

The GST rate for labour charges (job work) has been increased from 12% to 18% and it is expected to hit hard the Micro, Small, and Medium-scale Enterprises (MSMEs).

C. Sivakumar, president of the Coimbatore Tiruppur district Micro and Cottage Entrepreneurs Association, said one of the long-pending demands of the job working/sub-contract industries in the manufacturing sector is the reduction of GST on job work to 5% from 12%. However, the government has increased it to 18%. This will create several challenges for the job working in micro and small-scale industries, he said.

The Coimbatore District Small Industries Association has urged the government to have a relook at the rates for job work. The government should put in place a system so that lower GST rates for job work benefit the MSMEs that are vendors to larger industries and get only labour charges. The 18% duty will block the liquidity for the MSMEs, it said.