MSME delayed payments: The number of applications or complaints filed by micro and small enterprises (MSEs) in the country against delay in their payments pending with central ministries, departments, central and state public sector units, and others for goods and services purchased has hit 1.56 lakh mark, according to the official data. The applications or cases disposed by MSE facilitation councils — set up across the country to act as an arbitrator for settlement of payments — were 30,527 or 19.5 per cent of the total applications.
According to the data available on the delayed payment monitoring portal MSME Samadhaan, Rs 37,322 crore was involved in total applications filed since the launch of the portal on October 30, 2017. The disposed cases involved Rs 5,328 crore.
9,699 applications were filed against state governments while 5,801 applications were filed against central PSUs. Central ministries, central departments, state PSUs, and MSME units had 1154, 2267, 3230 and 12,822 applications filed against them by MSEs since October 2017.
Currently, 32,894 cases amounting to Rs 11,562 crore were under consideration by facilitation councils while 39,720 applications involving Rs 7,808 crore were rejected.
For quicker disposal of cases, the MSME Ministry has requested states/union territories to set up more number of facilitation councils. “More than one MSEFC has been set in Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, U.P. & West Bengal,” Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma, Minister of State in the MSME Ministry had informed Parliament on August 7.
Also read: MSME dues: 73% decline seen in YoY disposal of delayed payment applications in FY23
Importantly, the number of applications disposed in FY23 had dropped by a significant 73.5 per cent year-on-year in comparison to a 50 per cent decline in FY22. According to the data, 1,043 applications involving Rs 182 crore were disposed by the councils in FY23 vis-a-vis 3,937 applications involving Rs 441 crore disposed in FY22 and 7,879 applications involving Rs 1,599 crore disposed in FY21, FE Aspire had reported in June.