New Delhi: The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has introduced its flagship initiative, the Development of Industry Associations (DIA), a national scheme designed to strengthen MSMEs through innovative, low-cost, and self-sustaining cluster development models.
The National Conclave on Development of Industry Associations was inaugurated in New Delhi by M Nagaraju, Secretary, Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance.
Development of Industry Associations to Empower MSME Clusters
The launch of the Development of Industry Associations (DIA) witnessed participation from nearly 125 representatives of around 90 industry associations across India, including eight associations from four northeastern states.
Also Read: CRIF SIDBI Small Businesses Report 2025: Small Business Credit Expands 21.8 Per Cent CAGR
The associations represent a wide range of industries such as engineering, plastics, printing, textiles, food processing, furniture, jewellery, and electronics.
Addressing the conclave, Manoj Mittal, CMD of SIDBI, underlined the vision behind the initiative, stating, “Strong Clusters need Strong Industry Associations.” SIDBI’s dual approach under the DIA will focus on two key aspects – first, supporting industry associations through infrastructure, skilled manpower, and initial activities with a demand-driven framework, and second, digitally strengthening the ecosystem via a dedicated portal. The platform will allow associations and members to access research, networking opportunities, updated industry insights, and solutions to financial and technical requirements.
Mittal further emphasized that the ultimate goal is to build financially sustainable industry associations equipped with action plans and capable of delivering strategic services to members.
He cited the example of Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), which have grown to over 44,000 units within a decade, generating significant revenues and delivering transformational services.
Also Read: India Export Data Shows Growth Driven by Electronics, Gems, Services in August 2025
Inaugurating the conclave, M Nagaraju highlighted that India must evolve from production hubs to innovation epicentres. He explained that cluster development follows four stages – initiation, establishment, operationalization, and transformation – and noted that many Indian clusters remain at the establishment or operationalization level. He urged industry associations to serve as catalysts for transformation, guiding clusters to integrate with global value chains.
Nagaraju stressed that many associations currently face challenges of scale, financial sustainability, and modern service delivery. He underlined that strengthening the Development of Industry Associations (DIA) is essential to empower MSMEs and transform clusters into innovation-driven ecosystems.
Innovative Models for Self-Sustaining Industry Associations
During a roundtable discussion at the conclave, stakeholders identified innovative models to enhance sustainability of industry associations.
Proposals included MSME Solution Centres leveraging retired professionals, gain-sharing models with workers, reducing documentation requirements, generating royalties from service providers, and offering critical fee-based services.
