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Indian Bank’s MSME Prerana Is Empowering Small Businesses For The New Normal

Indian Bank’s MSME Prerana: Online Business Mentoring Programme For Entrepreneurs

Indian Bank’s MSME Prerana Is Empowering Small Businesses For The New Normal

*This is in partnership with BloombergQuint BrandStudio

Indian Bank’s MSME Prerana is an online business mentoring programme designed to make entrepreneurs self-reliant. The programme has been a ray of hope and inspiration to Indian Micro Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) entrepreneurs during the Covid-19 pandemic-driven crisis and is playing a vital role in driving a fresh impetus to the government's Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative, which aims to make India not only self-reliant, but a nation that empowers the world.

While this pandemic was a watershed moment for MSMEs that are grappling with issues like business failure, closure of units, workforce problems. disruption in delivery schedules, payable and receivables issues, Indian Bank envisaged a novel, unique, innovative and first-of-its-kind programme to empower MSMEs.

While launching this flagship programme in October 2020, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said, “Indian Bank has taken this out-of-the-box initiative in launching MSME Prerana, which will handhold entrepreneurs through a mentoring programme.”

MSME Prerana has since broken geographical and language barriers by extending Web-based training to entrepreneurs—women and SC/ST entrepreneurs in particular. Training has been extended in local dialects using simple terminologies and avoiding any complicated jargon. A series of virtual programmes have been successfully conducted in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Odisha, Bihar and West Bengal till date.

Indian Bank has always been a frontrunner in providing financial support to MSMEs, extending 18 lakhs Indian MSMEs with credit assistance of Rs. 70,180 crore till date. However, it was felt that MSMEs needed support beyond credit and could not be left to face the uncertain and volatile situation caused by the pandemic by themselves.

Hence MSME Prerana was conceptualized to not just bring clarity on business numbers, help MSME owners understand balance sheet analysis and cashflow management but to additionally impart business mentoring to enhance confidence and build a sense of empowerment, especially among women entrepreneurs. Participating women found that knowledge and business planning helped them to set goals and targets better for their enterprises.

The programme has been customised as per the requirements of entrepreneurs and various industry sectors like textiles, automobile, food processing, the leather industry, etc. MSME Prerana further amplifies the special schemes/initiatives taken by respective state governments, in addition to the Central government and regulatory bodies like the Reserve Bank of India. MSME Prerana is now expanding its outreach to all states and complements the efforts of respective state government for the revival of the India MSME sector.

Indian Bank has developed a website on MSME Prerana for establishing an integrated business information solution network that links all relevant state- and central-level information resources as a one-stop resource.

More information is available at https://indianbank.in/ind-msme-prerana/