MSME DNC-Leh holds entrepreneurship awareness programme in remote Zangla village

63 participants attend outreach initiative; focus on homestays, self-employment, government schemes and cluster-based enterprise development

ZANSKAR: In an effort to promote entrepreneurship and expand self-employment opportunities in remote areas of Ladakh, the MSME Development Nucleus Cell, Leh, under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), Government of India, organised a one-day Entrepreneurship Awareness Programme at Zangla village in Zanskar on Friday.

The programme aimed to sensitise unemployed youth, women and rural residents about government support for setting up micro and small enterprises, enabling them to explore sustainable livelihood opportunities closer to home. According to the organisers, this was the first such programme conducted by the Ministry of MSME in Zangla, a remote and industrially underdeveloped area of Ladakh.

Addressing the participants, Amit Kumar Tamaria, Joint Director and Head of Office, MSME-DNC Leh, briefed them on various schemes and initiatives of the Ministry designed to support aspiring entrepreneurs and existing enterprises. He encouraged participants to make effective use of these schemes and consider entrepreneurship as a means of livelihood.

Highlighting the tourism potential of Zanskar, Tamaria stressed that establishing homestays could provide an avenue for local residents to generate income from the region’s growing tourism opportunities. He also urged participants to develop viable proposals for establishing a cluster under the Ministry’s Micro and Small Enterprises Cluster Development Programme (MSE-CDP), which could help local entrepreneurs pursue collective enterprise development.

Vinu Jee Koul, Assistant Director, MSME-DNC Leh, delivered the welcome address and highlighted the role of the MSME sector in employment generation, entrepreneurship promotion and economic growth in Ladakh, particularly in Zanskar. He also explained the benefits available to traditional artisans under the PM Vishwakarma scheme.

Muddasir Rahowf Wani, Functional Manager, Department of Industries and Commerce, Ladakh, briefed participants on the department’s role in promoting industrial and business activities and explained the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP). He encouraged aspiring entrepreneurs to prepare viable project proposals and establish their own enterprises.

Muneer Rasool Wani, District Programme Manager, Ladakh Rural Livelihoods Mission (LRLM), Kargil, outlined the mission’s role in forming and strengthening self-help groups (SHGs). He also apprised participants of subsidised loan facilities available to eligible self-help groups to support livelihood and income-generating activities.

Tsering Morup, Lead District Manager for Kargil and Zanskar, explained the banking facilities and financial inclusion schemes available to residents. He urged participants to explore government-sponsored loan schemes to access institutional finance for starting or expanding their businesses.

The programme was attended by 63 participants. An interactive question-and-answer session was held at the conclusion, during which participants raised queries regarding various MSME schemes and received on-the-spot clarifications from the resource persons.

The outreach initiative sought to familiarise residents of remote Zanskar with available institutional support and encourage them to translate local opportunities, including tourism, traditional skills and small-scale business activities, into viable sources of employment and income.