Haryana MSMEs feel the heat as HSIIDC turns realtor

Dushyant Chautala, Haryana's Deputy Chief Minister and Industry Minister, scoffs at the charge. He told Bizz Buzz: "what else would a corporation do? How does it earn money?"

New Delhi: A new problem is troubling Haryana's industrial units. Haryana State Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) is maximizing profits in the sale of plots, much to the chagrin of businesspersons, especially those running micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). The State government, however, doesn't find anything amiss in profit making by HSIIDC.

The representative of a major industrial area association said: "Instead of giving land in one go, HSIIDC hoards land and sells it so that it could mop up the maximum amount."

Deputy Chief Minister of Haryana Dushyant Chautala, who holds the industry portfolio, scoffs at the charge. He told Bizz Buzz at an event in Gurugram, "what else would a corporation do? How does it earn money?" Chautala has a point, for if HSIIDC - or, for that matter, any other government-owned entity -incurs losses, it is the taxpayer who suffers. After all, money is drawn from the public exchequer to bail out such entities.

He doesn't want such a situation. In December 2021, he had claimed that the financial condition of HSIIDC had improved in the past few years and the target was to make it a profit-making company.

Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (Fisme) Secretary General Anil Bhardwaj, however, doesn't quite agree with the profit maximization aspect. "HSIIDC's mandate is not to make profit; it is to nurture and develop industry and infrastructure in the state. There are many other ways of making the finances of a public-sector company better other than selling land to entrepreneurs at exorbitant prices," he said.

In this context, it would be instructive to look at the "vision," as stated in HSIIDC's website: "Driving all round economic development in the State by providing world-class infrastructure and inspiring entrepreneurship, resilience and success through timely provision of support services and facilitations."

Further, it says that it was "set up as a catalyst for promoting and accelerating the pace of industrialization in the State through development of industrial infrastructure in the state and providing a wide spectrum of services under one roof with the concept of 'Total Industrial Support' for its clientele."

HSIIDC should stick to its charter, Haryana entrepreneurs said. They also mention a recent report of the Comptroller and Auditor General or CAG, which accused HSIIDC of incompetent handling of a training programme, leading to an excess payment of Rs2.96 crore to the training provider.