FoIJ demands price, purchase preference for local MSME units

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, Oct 15: Lalit Mahajan, Co-Chairman Federation of Industries Jammu (FoIJ) and president Bari Brahmana Industries Association today demanded price/ purchase preference for procurement of goods works from local MSME units by State/ Central Govt Departments working in Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Mahajan also extended gratitude to Lt Governor Manoj Sinha, Chief Secretary Arun Kumar Mehta, Financial Commissioner Finance Deptt Atal Dulloo and Principal Secretary I&C, Ranjan Prakash Thakur for the issuance Circular No. FD-Code/83/2021-03-729 dated 20-07-2021 by the virtue of which an advisory issued by Finance Department to all the Administrative Secretaries to follow the GFR-2017 Rules while issuing NITs and not show any requirement for particular BRANDS of material in the NITs, which is in violation of GFR and CVC guidelines for the procurement of goods /works resulting great relief to the MSME Sector of the Union Territory of J&K for the supply of goods to Government Departments.
It is pertinent to mention here that in past most of the Govt departments of J&K UT issued the NITs for the procurement of goods/works with the “BRAND” Specific for the reason best known to the concerned officials resulting denial of the participation of the local MSME units who are manufacturing the quality goods duly BIS marked as par with the outside suppliers at par with the requirement of the Department.
Mahajan also drawn the attention of Lt. Governor towards the plight of local MSME Units suffering very badly due to step motherly treatment being given by the J&K Govt departments while purchasing the goods in spite of the facts that the local SSI units willing to supply the goods at the lowest offer received from outside the state. Moreover, the position is more serious that in case of local MSME units quoted rates at par with the outside suppliers, partial orders shall place to local suppliers and the bulk supply shall be taken from the outside suppliers.
It is worthwhile to mention here that due to locational disadvantages the local MSME units cannot compete with the outside suppliers and keeping in mind the above facts the price and purchase preference always given to the local MSME units in the industrial policies issued by the J&K Govt in past but in the Industrial Policy 2021-30 no such incentive is given to the local MSME Units, due to which thousand of MSME units dependent on the Govt supplies are facing closure.