Coimbatore MSMEs see orders moving to other districts, States

Coimbatore district, a vibrant MSME cluster, is seeing multiple challenges that are slowing down the industrial activity across sectors.

According to M. Karthikeyan, president of the Coimbatore District Small Industries Association, credit off-take by the MSMEs has reduced since last financial year. The target for this year is almost ₹39,000 crores and there has been hardly any off take in the first quarter of financial year 2025-2026, especially for capital investments. Banks are organising loan melas to attract investments, he said.

The main challenge is the reluctance by the units to invest for expansion or in technology because there is no “risk appetite.” The MSME units do not want to take fresh loans, want to keep their enterprise as a family business, and are not aware of the technology benefits. This should change, he said.

J. James, president of the Tamil Nadu Association of Cottage and Tiny Enterprises, said 60 % of the orders from pumpset companies have gone to Gujarat. Orders from the automobile sector is going to multiple centres such as Hosur and Chennai. And, textile orders have reduced. Further, the MSMEs that invested in technology are unable to get viable returns. “High end machinery have increased productivity and we need to get more orders to sustain operations,” he said.

President of the Southern India Engineering Manufacturers’ Association, Mithun Ramdass, said April to June is the peak season for pumpset sales and this year, Coimbatore industries have seen 20 % to 30 % drop in business. “The main reason is unseasonal rains. Sales is declining since last July and the last three months were very bad,” he said.

This has led to loss in labour, reduction in number of weekly working days, etc. “This quarter is unexpectedly low. We should wait for the festival season,” he said.

The slowdown in orders has impacted foundries too, he said.

Mr. James added that labourers preferring to work at the MSMEs are also not much. “We are not getting labourers because of the changing scenario.” The Central and State government should look at focused measures to revive the MSMEs, he said.