The Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME), Government of India organized National SC-ST Hub (NSSH) Conclave at Dawrpui Multipurpose Centre, Aizawl, Mizoram on 15 October.

The conclave was held to promote entrepreneurship culture and spread awareness of the NSSH Scheme and other schemes of the MSME.

The event was attended by over 300 SC-ST entrepreneurs.

Mercy Epao, Joint Secretary, Ministry of MSME, said the MSME ministry implements the National SC-ST Hub Scheme for inclusive growth. The objective is to create an ecosystem for SC/ST entrepreneurs and support them to participate in public procurement in order to reach the 4% mandate as per the public procurement policy.

The chief guest, Minister of Health & Family Welfare, Higher & Technical Education, Commerce & Industry, Government of Mizoram, Lalthangliana, motivated the NSSH scheme beneficiaries by felicitating them and inspiring the aspiring entrepreneurs present at the program.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Lalthangliana said: “It will be heartening to see SC-ST entrepreneurs from Mizoram leverage benefits offered under NSSH and various other schemes of Ministry of MSME.”

He urged the participants to interact with the representatives from various organizations participating in the Conclave and discuss about the opportunities that can be leveraged by them. He also said that it is imperative for the State Government to work hand in hand with the Ministry of MSME to scale-up the growth of the MSME sector of the state.

The programme provided an interactive platform for aspiring and existing SC-ST entrepreneurs to interact with Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs), lending institutions, Government e Marketplace (GeM), Rural Self Employment Training Institutes (RSeti) among others.

The program also had facilitation desks of UDYAM Registration and GeM for facilitating registrations of SC/ST MSE participants on the spot.