GUWAHATI, March 24: The North Eastern Small Scale Industries’ Association (NESSIA) has welcomed DIPP, Union Ministry of Commerce , for the announcement of the long-awaited North East Industrial Development Scheme (NEIDS ).
The scheme, according to a press release issued by NESSIA, allows incentives to the units that commenced commercial production after April 1, 2017 and shall be for a period of five years till March 31, 2022. The scheme is for the north-eastern region only.
State NESSIA president Sailen Baruah and secretary Kumud Chandra Medhi, at a meeting organized for entrepreneurs, said recently that the new scheme has continued most of the schemes of the earlier NEIIPP, 2007 with changes and some limitations consequent upon the rollout of the GST, additiol provisions like Centre’s readiness to pay eligible units 3.67 per cent of the employees contribution to the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) have been introduced in the scheme. Baruah welcomed and said in order to check the malpractices and misuse of the incentives provided in NEIIPP mostly in transport subsidy were given for road transport. But the new scheme has provisions for subsidies only in case of movement of finished goods through Railways 20 per cent, IWAI 20 per cent or airways 30 per cent. Since the transportation will be done through government agencies, there will be little scope for manipulation but needed strict vigilance of the Government of Assam. The NESSIA also stressed employment of 98 per cent local people by Industry.
The new scheme also promotes the MSME sector and at the same time creates employment which is over 20 lakh in Assam.