The total number of jobs reported by micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the country has crossed the 19-crore mark, according to data from the Udyam registration portal. Over 4.40 crore MSMEs registered with the MSME Ministry through the Udyam certification have reported 19.09 crore jobs, at the time of filing this report, growing by more than 2x from 8.81 crore in November 2022.
This included 4.27 crore women employees and 2.15 crore employees in enterprises not covered under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime or exempted from the CGST Act, 2017. From 2.8 crore in July 2020 when the Udyam registration portal was launched by the government, the job count has grown 6.8 times.
Highlighting the government measures to increase employment generation by MSMEs, the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) under the Finance Ministry in its monthly economic report in February this year had noted that the revision in the definition of MSMEs provided ease in doing business and promoted investment and employment.
Moreover, the launch of the Emergency Credit Link Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) had eased liquidity problems of MSMEs, leading to a reduction in their Non-Performing Assets (NPAs).
The previous definition of MSMEs was based on investment up to Rs 10 crore in plant and machinery while the new definition notified on June 1, 2020, covered enterprises with turnover up to Rs 250 crore and investment up to Rs 50 crore under the MSME ambit.
Even as the number of jobs reported in the MSME sector continues to grow, there is no information available on jobs lost in the sector.
Minister of State in the MSME ministry Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma had informed Parliament in February last year that the data on the temporary or permanent loss of jobs in the MSME sector is not maintained by the government as MSMEs are present in both formal and informal sectors.