State tops MSME manufacture, Mamata hails role of women
Times of India | 11 March 2025
12 Kolkata: Citing a National Statistical Office (NSO) report, Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee on Monday said that not only did Bengal have the highest number of MSME manufacturing units in India, but also topped the country when it came to female-led establishments.
The CM cited NSO's ‘Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises' to hail Bengal's outstanding performance in several other sectors as well. For example, Bengal tops the country in terms of workers engaged in manufacturing enterprises (13.8%). Bengal also topped in "other service" enterprises (13%). Bengal's (MSME) manufacturing pie is of 16%.
Banerjee posted on X: "Happy to share that the recently published findings of the ‘Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises' conducted by the National Statistics Office, Government of India, once again establish Bengal's top position in (MSME) manufacturing industries and, simultaneously, our women's wonderful performance there... Bengal boasts the highest percentage (36.4%) of female-headed establishments in India. West Bengal shares the highest percentage (12.73%) in female workers in ‘Unincorporated Sector Enterprises'.
Reacting to this, economist and former ISI professor Abhirup Sarkar told TOI that Bengal has been topping different categories of MSME as well as in number of women entrepreneurs for a long time. Sarkar added that Bengal has traditionally been an industrial state and so the share of industry in the state was also higher than national average. "Some big industries may have shifted over the years but the backbone — MSME sector — remains strong because of our history of ancillaries," he said.
Sarkar said that land-to-man ratio was adverse in the state.
"Land parcel is limited here and there is huge population pressure on land, making MSME a viable alternative," he added.
Recently, HP India MD Ipsita Dasgupta had told TOI that she was impressed with Bengal's MSME potential.
FACSI (Federation of Associations of Cottage & Small Industries) president H K Guha, who has been associated with the MSME sector for over 50 years, said that huge number of self-help groups led by women and independent women-led enterprises in the districts were the main reasons for Bengal's growth in the MSME sector.