COIMBATORE: Presence of diverse industrial units in a district will help the growth of the region, according to District Collector P. Umanath.

Speaking at a meeting organised for industries here, he said that Coimbatore had the highest number of small and medium-scale units in the State. The advantage was not just the number of industries but also the different types of industries that were located here. This was good for the future. Coimbatore was popularly known as the Manchester of South India. However, it should be known as the Shanghai of South India as no city or district would be able to grow depending on just one sector, he said.

The small and medium-scale units depended more on banks and Government Departments, compared to large-scale units.

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He asked the entrepreneurs to give their feedback and suggestions on the Government schemes and their demands for more programmes.

General Manager of the District Industries' Centre S. Asokan said 146 industries here had received Rs. 42 crore capital subsidy under the MSME Policy 2008 and 187 units had received Rs. 1.3 crore generator subsidy.

With regard to delayed payments for services and products made by SMEs, of the 118 cases, 32 cases were settled and Rs. 39 lakh disbursed. Settlements were reached for another 42, he said.

Courtesy - Hindu