It is no secret that globalisation has almost killed the Small Scale Industries (SSIs) in our country. A case of big fish swallowing the small fish. To swim in the ocean with the sharks and not be swallowed is no ordinary achievement. Be it manufacturing industry, service industry or an industry like newspaper. The gates are wide open for imports, leading to dumping on the shores of developing and poor countries. India not excluded. So the danger.
It is for this reason I keep admiring every new SSI entrepreneur. Especially if it is poised for higher growth to become medium size and even higher. One such enterprise in Mysore is AJ Stationery Pvt. Ltd., in Hebbal Industrial Area. This is one industry, among very few, that has succeeded against all odds. And I heard it from the lips of the person who promoted the industry — Mr. Ashvini Ranjan.
The occasion was the inauguration of the II unit that would supply the basic raw material, paper board, as import substitute to its first unit at Hootagalli that manufactures world class stationery items — a vast range of files and related items. It was an opportunity for him to traverse the dark, narrow memory lane of the early days, which is not really not long ago. Indeed he has come a long way Sir.
As he spoke of the difficulties he faced, I thought of my own days, about 10 years ahead of him, in setting up my printing unit. Though Mysore district in 1970's was declared an industrially backward district and many benefits were doled out by the government, much of it went to the sharks like MMC and Karnataka Ball Bearing, to name a few, whose buildings stand there like ghost houses, deserted, apparently after enjoying the State's financial concessions on land, tax, excise, interest etc. SSIs too were the beneficiaries, with low - interest seed capital, land etc. And corruption, of course, was there then, as it is now. As a result, the pirates of big industries took the loot and vacated Mysore while the locals like me and others got stuck with the corrupt bureaucracy.
Many who struggled despite problems made it, but an equal number simply faded away, closed shop. It is not the failure of the entrepreneur really. In truth it is the failure of the government, its DIC and other related functionaries who could not keep the government's promise. It promised easy finance, it promised subsidized raw material, it promised infrastructure — road, water, UGD, electricity — but provided nothing. Even now it is the same state in Hebbal Industrial Area.
The allotment of land has become a racket, as it has always been, but now a bigger racket with Ministers turning a blind eye. It is a battle of sorts between the corrupt bureaucracy and the determined entrepreneur. If Ashvini Ranjan got this land of 2.5 acres for his II unit, there was a special reason that he mentioned in his speech while thanking Mr. Siddaiah, IAS, now Commissioner, Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), who inaugurated the facility. But how many can have such a blessing? I did not check with Ashvini if he has the infrastructure in place like UGD and water. As for the road, there indeed was a brand new one and also electricity. This was not the case when I visited another SSI in the same vicinity last month.
Like in the early days of electoral politics when liquor lobby, that is Excise lobby, used to manipulate the government and its policies with its money, later, as emphasis was given to industrialization, KIADB, the master of the industrial land that drove the industrial engine, played the same role. Crores of rupees allotted for developing the industrial areas were looted by manipulating accounts, raising bogus bills and in a hundred thousand ways. The Minister in - charge of KIADB became the fund raiser for the party while making a pile for himself. This scenario is not changed even now except to those like Ashvini Ranjan (for the reason mentioned above). Otherwise, I swear, his unit II would not have taken off the ground even now.
Let me just give an example. It is indeed a case of our old mariner's cry “water, water, everywhere, but not a drop to drink”. KIADB has lands but...
Mr. X (name of the person and the firm withheld) working in R & D Global Operations of a multinational company in Bangalore went to the US and returned after two years in 2007 with grandiose plans to set up an industry in his motherland and mother State Karnataka. To be specific, in Mysore.
Till April 2008, he was not able to get 5 acres of land he needed from the KIADB. Ironically, even after paying money to KIADB for the land! And he is not ready to pay BRIBE. A principled HUMAN BEING pitched against an unprincipled beast? GOK!
This man, fed up, is now planning to go to Gujarat to set up his Rs. 150 crore industry (name of the product is withheld). The poor man has been working in a rented premises for the last one year in city with 40 employees. For what end?
This takes me back to the function where Siddaiah spoke in an informally formal way, in immaculate English unlike many IAS officers who lisp, slur, go rambling off the tangent, whether intentionally or for having reached their level of incompetency, I do not know. I knew Siddaiah when he was the Deputy Commissioner here. An easily accessible officer, very helpful and fond of music and light - hearted banter. I remember with nostalgia two evenings I spent along with my friend late Mohan, correspondent of UNI and others with him where music and song alluringly blended with the spirit of the evening. He has a melodious voice.
Be that as it may, to revert to the subject, Siddaiah, while agreeing with the observation of Ashvini about the problems in getting industrial land, even to genuine aspirants, mentioned of what he did when he was the boss of KIADB.
An aspiring industrialist did his home work, including identifying the land and telephoned Siddaiah for an appointment. When asked the purpose of the appointment, the caller told him about the industrial land that he has already identified. Siddaiah told him not to bother about meeting him, instead to send him the papers. The very next day Siddaiah faxed the sanction to the aspiring industrialist. As Siddaiah was mentioning it with considerable pride (rightly so), I was wondering about the trauma suffered and the money spent by this aspiring industrialist to do his "home work" and in identifying the land! Did you get me Steve?
Let it be, but even more important was what he said about his way of taking decisions when it came to industries. He said he always considered the GDP, the economic growth and the employment the proposed industry generated for the country and if these tests are met, he cleared the papers with utmost urgency. I can believe him. Wish we had more of his kind in our IAS cadre.
This same sentiment was expressed by Aroon Raman of Raman Fibre Science Pvt. Ltd., (formerly of Raman Boards, Nanjangud). In fact, Aroon went a step further. He opined that considering we have a large number of high school drop-outs, if we have more number of SSIs there would be greater scope for employing less educated people, who would otherwise remain unemployed. After all, we must remember that ultimately our every venture, enterprise and planning must be for the people; for the greatest good of the greatest number. Let us hope our government realises this political, economical and social truth. To me government means politicians and the mandarins.
I am reminded of the American President Ronald Reagan who had sarcastically remarked to his Congressmen that “his government itself is the problem”.
