An economic study of micro enterprises in Mumbai with special reference to metal tools and die making enterprises

Abstract

The manufacturing segment of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) has played a very significant role in economic growth and development of India. For instance, the urban MSMEs account for 55% of employment, with the manufacturing sector contributing 32%. This is a sector-wise distribution of employment among the MSMEs. newlineThis research is a study of metal tool and die-making enterprises an urban segment of the manufacturing MSMEs. These enterprises are engaged in manufacturing a huge variety of intermediate goods in the form of tools and dies used in large-scale manufacturing units. Injection mould, hydraulic press, nut-bolt, casting dies, etc. are some of the examples of the goods manufactured by these enterprises. The study aimed to understand the socio-economic profile of the entrepreneurs of the micro-enterprises, the nature and organisation of their work, their difficulties and challenges, status of government policy implementation concerning micro enterprises and suggest suitable policy measures based on the findings of the study. newlineThe study covered 312 metal tools and die-making enterprises in Mumbai. Statistical tools such as Chi-square test, Rank Correlation etc. have been used for drawing interpretations. The major findings of the study include that the nature of work of the enterprises is unorganised due to very small size of the holdings, lack of appropriate resource allocation, prevalence of structural and financial bottlenecks leading to various operational contingencies for the enterprises. newlineThe lack of awareness about the plethora of schemes and policies initiatives of the governments for MSMES needs check. Hence, the study has provided various suggestions for the direct beneficiaries of schemes (the metal tools and die-making enterprises) and for the policy makers so as to ensure better outreach and impact on the health of these enterprises. newline newline