IT&E dept bats for use of tech to boost business prospects of MSME clusters

Kolkata: The state Information Technology & Electronics (IT&E) department is pushing for the organised industries to adopt MSME clusters so that they can use technology to improve the latter's business prospects.

"We need to give these clusters basic enterprise management through standard software, e-commerce platform and design creation. I will urge the industrial bodies to adopt at least one cluster and provide them the technology

to make a change in their standard of living," state Additional Chief Secretary IT Debashis Sen said, while speaking at an event organised by CII recently.

Elaborating on the objective of the state government, a senior official of the IT department said that the government is coming up with an export hub in Phulia at Shantipur in Nadia, for upliftment of the weavers who make beautiful cotton sarees.

"The weavers still suffer from financial constraints and don't even have a website. If we can provide basic technology enterprise to them so that they can have stock management and create an e-commerce platform for marketing or integrate some sort of creative design in their products, they will be able to tap the global market in a much better way," the official said.

The same concept can be applied for clusters like the Bankura horse in Panchmura, the Dokra craft of Guskara, Burdwan, the guitar strings of Howrah, the Kansa of Murshidabad and the fan manufacturing hub of Uluberia to name a few.

"We have already reached out to NASSCOM and will urge other industrial bodies in the state to come forward and adopt at least one such cluster which will bring a significant change in the living conditions of the weavers associated with these clusters," the official added.