A small scale industry (SSI) is an industrial undertaking in which the investment in fixed assets in plant & machinery, whether

held on ownership term or on lease or hire purchase, does not exceed Rs. 1Crore Entrepreneurship Importance of Small Scale Industries Entrepreneurs in small scale sector are normally not required to obtain a licence either from the Central Government or the State Government for setting up units in any part of the country. Registration of a small scale unit is also not compulsory. But,its registration with the State Directorate or Commissioner of Industries or DIC's makes the unit eligible for availing different types of Government assistance like financial assistance from the Department of Industries, medium and long term loans from State Financial Corporations and other commercial banks The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises acts as the nodal agency for growth and development of SSIs in the country. The ministry formulates and implements policies and programmes in order to promote small scale industries and enhance their competitiveness. In a developing country like India, Small Scale Industries play a significant role in economic development of the country. They are a vital segment of Indian economy in terms of their contribution towards country's industrial production, exports, employment and creation of an entrepreneurial base Given their importance, the Government policy framework has highlighted the need for the development of SSI sector, the policy support from the Government towards Small Scale Industries has tended to be conducive and favourable to the development of small entrepreneurial class keeping in view its strategic importance in the overall economic development of India. The most important promotional policy of the Government for the SSI's is fiscal incentives in the form of tax concessions and exemptions of direct or indirect taxes leviable on production or profits. Objective of Small Scale Industries The small scale sector can stimulate economic activity and is entrusted with the responsibility of realizing the following objectives:

To create more employment opportunities with less investment. To remove economic backwardness of rural and less developed regions of the economy.

To reduce regional imbalance. To mobilize and ensure optimum utilization of unexploited resources of the country. To improve standard of living of people. To ensure equitable distribution of income and wealth. To solve unemployment problem. To attain self reliance. To adopt latest technology aimed at producing better quality products at lower costs. Advantages of Small Scale Industries There are numerous arguments in favour of the small-scale industries which justify the rationale of small-scale industry development. The Industrial Policy Resolution 1956 has put forward four arguments in favour of small-scale industries which emphasise the very rationale of small-scale industry in the Indian economy. 1. Employment Argument: Small-scale industries have a great potential to create immediate large-scale employment opportunities which is essential for solving widespread unemployment problems of underdeveloped nations. Small-scale industries are labour intensive than capital intensive. As India is a capital scarce and labour abundant country and the major problem of the economy refers to unemployment, it could have been addressed by small-scale units which sometimes even provide 15 to 20 times greater employment than corresponding large industries with any given investment. 2. Equality Argument: Another argument supporting the rationale of small-scale units refers to equality argument for even distribution of income and wealth. Small-scale units, because of its ownership pattern which is widespread and labour intensive in character provide millions of employment to the unemployed more particularly the rural poor who are in search of employment to eke-out their livelihood. 3. Decentralisation Argument: Decentralisation argument also supports the rational of small-scale units because it aims at regional dispersal of industries in the country. Decentralisation of industries help tap local resources like raw materials, idle

savings local talents etc. and make provision for self-employment and capital formation. This helps in increase in income of the people which ultimately improves the standard of living of the people. 4. Latent Resource Argument: The latent resource argument for tapping hoarded and unutilized wealth strongly supports the case for small industries. Small enterprises provide an environment in which the latent talents of entrepreneurs find self-expression. Disadvantages of Small Scale Industries Cost of Production The costs of a business enterprise are spread out among its output units. Thus, the higher the output of the enterprise, the lower its cost per unit. This means that largescale businesses enjoy a lower cost per unit. They are also able to break even faster than small-scale businesses. Thus, larger businesses are likely to have a price advantage over small-scale business. Marketing and Distribution A large scale also confers an advantage when it comes to marketing and distribution of products. Small-scale businesses often don't have the marketing and distribution network that larger businesses command. Developing a distribution channel calls for money to invest in equipment and transportation. Larger businesses also may be able to give buyers better prices than small-scale businesses, thanks to their beneficial costs of production. Access to Funding Another disadvantage to small-scale business is that they may find it more difficult to access funding through formal channels. Large financial institutions focus on data and quantitative factors to assess businesses for funding purposes. Small-scale business are more likely to be personality and relationship-oriented, rather than focusing on quantitative aspects. The vision of the entrepreneur is not something bankers can quantify for lending purposes. Absence of adequate infrastructure: Indian economy is characterized by inadequate infrastructure which is a major problems for small units to grow. Most of the small units and industrial estates found in towns and cities are having one or more problems like lack of power supply, water and drainage problem, poor roads, raw materials. Thus absence of adequate infrastructure adversely affect the quality, quantity and production schedule of the enterprises which ultimately results in under-utilization of capacity.

ENVIRO- LOG : Manufactures eco friendly firelogs and fire starters. Enviro-Log says it is the largest recycler of waxed old corrugated cardboard in North America and the third largest producer of manufactured firelogs in the U.S. Its firelogs are made of 100% recycled materials, cleaner burning, and emit 30% lower greenhouse gases, while providing 50% more heat per pound, the company says. The firelogs are also the only manufactured firelog tested safe for use in woodstoves, chimneys and campfires. The product is marketable in several industries because it can be used both indoors and outdoors. The product is popular in the camping industry, particularly since wood is monitored these days and traced for issues like bug infestations. Consumers can also reduce home energy bills by using the log as a heat supplement. Enviro-Log also produces eco-friendly firestarters, made from 100% recycled wax, as an alternative to kindling or petroleum-based starters. Ross McRoy, president of Enviro-Log, says it wouldn't make sense for the company to create its firelogs and firestarters anywhere but the U.S. "It's more cost effective to convert it here because of the cost of moving materials back. And we want to put people to work. There never was a thought of taking it overseas," McRoy says. Enviro-Log collects its materials from companies like grocery chains. McRoy says most vegetables are transferred in a wax corrugated container. Enviro-Log Firelogs can be purchased at select national retail locations including Home Depot(HD), Sears Holdings(SHLD), Kmart, Lowes(LOW), Whole Foods(WFM), Walmart(WMT), Dollar General(DG) and regional retailers throughout the U.S.

Startups are the craze and people starting up straight out of college arent a very big shock anymore. Th e internet wave has set in and it has given an opportunity to many starry eyed youngsters to dream big and build their own fortune. And this is the sector which gets most of the attention in media as well. In this process, offline businesses get sidelined sometimes and the value theyre creating doesnt get enough light. One such example is the story of Maku Textiles- a designer brand that originated from the slow fiber movement which encourages the use of hand woven cloth. Weaving is a dying art and the government is initiating numerous projects for the upliftment of these communities but hardly anything trickles down to the people for which it is meant.

Santanu Das and Chirag Gandhi Santanu Das, a designer from NID Ahmedabad was aware of this situation and wanted to do something via which the weavers can be helped directly. Chirag Gandhi, an engineering graduate from Nirma University joined forces with Shantanu to startup Maku and it has been almost an year since they started full-fledged operations.

So, what they do?

To explain in layman terms, the duo makes designs and gets them woven from the weavers in West Bengal and Kachchh, GUjarat and then they sell it in the markets. But there is a far deeper story here .

The middlemen rule

The textile industry is huge in terms of the amount of money involved and the scale at which it operates but the people controlling it are few. A close knit clan at the top which then widens up hugely at the bottom and the biggest role that is played in this business is by the middlemen. The hand woven textile industry is formed by the weavers at the bottom with a local middleman who manages them and delivers to the textile firms or individual dealers. And then it sold at exhibitions or boutiques. The markups are huge and a cloth which is sold at expensive price points hardly 5 % goes to weavers.

And the change

This set rule is what Maku and a few others in the market are trying to change. We want to create a better ecosystem for these weavers so that the craft is not lost and it is a fair deal for everyone in the game, from the weaver to the middleman to the end customer, say the duo. Other brands in the hand woven textile market started out in a similar fashion but eventually there is a greater coincidence that happens.

Santanu and Chirag have started out with the motto of anti-fashion which doesnt allow them to showcase their garments at fashion shows and they want to keep themselves as pro-weavers but the model is still shaping up. The duo had started up with some money from their parents and their own savings. They have now managed clocking in average revenues of around INR 1 lakh a month. Their main sales happen via exhibition in different cities in India, stores and direct sales via their FB page and other connections.

The Road Ahead

Currently based out of Ahmedabad, Maku is shifting base to Kolkata and is also hiring people to expand their business. VC funding is not a conventional route for such startups and hence theyd be looking at getting a loan from a bank in the near future. This designer-engineer duo is on an ambitious trail and the possibilities for Maku as a socially conscious brand is huge.'

Green Toys San Francisco Employees: 8

Green Toys creates socially-responsible children's toys that are produced in the U.S. The five-year-old company founded by Robert von Geoben and Laurie Hyman boasts that all phases of production including toy design, manufacturing, assembly and distribution are completed right outside San Francisco and made with 100% recycled plastic, mainly from recycled milk containers. "Making things in America was really important for our mission," Geoben says. "You hear a lot of talk about manufacturing in the U.S. and it all comes down to what is our competitive advantage in the U.S. We firmly believe that is quality. I think that when you are looking at things like toys, parents really care about the ... quality [and] the impact it has on the environment." Like food, parents want to know where the products are coming from, with a growing trend to prefer not just U.S.-made goods but locally-sourced goods and products, Geoben says. Consumers are responding to Green Toys's niche. The company is looking to expand the business to other kid-friendly and safe product lines, such as tableware. "We've been growing 50% percent every year since we were founded," Geoben says. Besides better transparency and insight into the manufacturing process of the toys (Green Toys does not have its own factory, it contracts out to a variety of factories in California), saving on overseas shipping costs and time lost waiting for shipments are two big positives, Geoben says. Geoben concedes that disadvantages of manufacturing in the U.S. include higher labor costs - given the higher standards of living, and working with several different factories (all of which are producing multiple products), means a company doesn't get the sole attention that perhaps would be offered with overseas manufacturing. "We spend a lot of time with our factories developing and manufacturing processes," he says. "It's actually rebuilding an industry here in the U.S. It's a thrill to go to the factory and see people making our toys. Just to see an American worker and think that you helped create that job is very satisfying." Geoben is hoping to expand this idea of "locally-sourced" kid products to other countries as well. "If we manufacture in other countries [and use local recycling materials, we want] to sell to those countries. Essentially our long term goal is reverse globalization," he says. "We want to change the way people see children's products."

As 3G sweeps a nation with over 670 million mobile phone connections, and Android phones become increasingly available, the opportunity for high value mobile enabled services is tremendous. Two industries that have already tapped into the ubiquity of mobile phones in a big way is entertainment and financial services, with applications ranging from music downloads and video streaming to banking that are attracting swaths of users and investments. But there is a third category that has only scratched the surface in India, which has potential to benefit a billion, especially when combined with the other two: mHealth. Mhealth (aka Mobile health) leverages mobile devices and information communication technology (ICT) to deliver health services and information exchange which can increase access, affordability, and quality of healthcare significantly. One of the first major mHealth interventions was introduced by Apollo Hospitals, using telemedicine to make secondary and tertiary medical expertise available to rural and peri-urban India through an audiovisual enabled delivery system. As qualified doctors are scarce in these areas, telemedicine has filled an important need. From the year 2000 to 2009, over 57,000 tele-consultations were performed across various disciplines, from sexual health to neurology. Apollo is now offering 24/7 consultations for just Rs 45, the equivalent of $1, and has 71 telemedicine centers across India. Due to the success of the program, the Delhi government is looking to expand the program in the near future in a public private partnership. This work has paved the way for other mHealth initiatives, but is far from serving the country of 1 billion. Why has Indian mHealth not picked up steam like mEntertainment and mFinance? Do Indians value fun and money over health? Sounds provocative, but that would be brutally simplistic and probably is somewhat untrue. Is the technology not there yet? Maybe, though plenty can be done with existing technology as evidenced through telemedicines start with relatively simple audiovisual equipment and wireless networks. Dr. Krishnan Ganapathy, one of the architects of Apollo Hospitals telemedicine program, recently said at the mHealth Summit in Washington DC that mHealth in general has only scratched the surface in India because there is a lack of awareness among patients and doctors about what mHealth is and what benefit it can provide. In business terms, the demand for mHealth is not there yet. Where as mEntertainment and mFinance create stand a

Please introduce yourself and tell us how the idea of follow yours came about? I am Mugil. I like to read news on technology,cricket,movies as everyone does.But my primary interests would be more specific.For eg, in cricket I like to read news about Sachin,Dravid and would not show much interest about others(not sure why ).The same is the case for technology,movies etc. I used to get updates from Twitter lists/News media/ Facebook. But I was not satisfied with the results that I have got (for my diverse interests).Either I have to visit lot of websites or quality/freshness of information is not good. So FollowYours.com was started as a project to scratch my own itch. As many of my friends were facing the same problem, I have started spending more time to solve this problem with couple of my friends(Deepath,Suresh). How does FollowYours.com work? FollowYours.com is like a modern day newspaper where you would get news(updates) only on your interests.Nothing more.Nothing less. FollowYours.com crawls websites, get the RSS feeds, search twitter and many other sources for getting information of users interests. We then rank the collected data (including user submitted data) by our own algorithm which calculates the authority score of the source to distill the data and thereby providing useful information to our users. Users will be getting information only on their interests which they follow. Who is it targeted at? FollowYours.com is targeted for users who wants to get updates only on their interests.People can group their interested topics in a Group tag . People do not need to visit multiple sites and still get fresh/useful updates on their interests. People can follow/unfollow tags with great ease. Can you share some examples? We strive to provide a simple service to make users to stay updates on their interests. one products supported by lots of advertising dollars, mHealth remains more of a value added service.