This edition of the ET SME Summits, which took place on August 7, had IDBI<\/a> as banking and lending partner, and Canon<\/a> as the tech enabler. Tyagi pointed to the state\u2019s micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME) sector, home to over 160,000 registered units, as both a key driver and a sector in need of transformation, especially in adopting new technology, accessing markets, and ensuring financial sustainability. Encouragingly, Punjab\u2019s startup count has soared from just seven in 2016 to over 800 today, thanks to initiatives such as Make in India, Atmanirbhar Bharat, and the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme.<\/p>\n The ET Make in India SME Regional Summits, ET MSME Day, and ET MSME Awards are flagship initiatives to celebrate the versatility and success of India\u2019s MSME sector. If you lead or are part of a micro, small, or medium enterprise, register for the ET MSME Awards 2025<\/a> before August 31, 2025.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"From leading India\u2019s Green Revolution to building a thriving manufacturing base, Punjab has been a cornerstone of the…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":142817,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[64,84862,607,84859,84864,59761,84867,84865,84860,84866,84858,84863,84861,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-142816","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entrepreneurship","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-digital-transformation-in-punjab","10":"tag-entrepreneurship","11":"tag-et-make-in-india-sme-regional-summit","12":"tag-gsdp-punjab-2023-24","13":"tag-idbi","14":"tag-make-in-india-initiatives","15":"tag-manufacturing-growth-in-punjab","16":"tag-msme-sector-in-punjab","17":"tag-pm-gatishakti-plan-impact","18":"tag-punjab-innovation-led-growth","19":"tag-shailendra-tyagi-speech-highlights","20":"tag-startup-ecosystem-in-punjab","21":"tag-united-states","22":"tag-unitedstates","23":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115022396533458398","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142816","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142816"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142816\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/142817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142816"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142816"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142816"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
The numbers reveal both strengths and challenges for Punjab, Tyagi added. Over the past decade, Punjab\u2019s Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) nearly doubled to \u20b97.44 lakh crore in 2023-24. Yet, with an average annual growth rate of 4.6%, which lags behind the national average of 5.7%, the state\u2019s industrial output has stagnated at around 24% of GSDP. Agriculture still contributes a hefty 27%, while manufacturing struggles to gain new momentum.<\/p>\n![\"ET](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/118783427.cms.png\")
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Infrastructure too is getting a boost through the PM GatiShakti plan, with projects like the Amritsar-Jamnagar Corridor and Ludhiana-Ajmer Expressway promising better connectivity. Meanwhile, export-oriented industries are benefitting from schemes like RoDTEP (Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products).At the heart of Tyagi\u2019s vision is innovation, and STPI is playing a leading role. Its Mohali centre offers plug-and-play incubation, high-speed connectivity, cloud access, and AI-focused entrepreneurship support through the \u2018Neuron Centre\u2019. Currently, 162 STP and ESDP (Science and Technology Park, Entrepreneurship and Skill Development Programme) units in Punjab export goods and services worth \u20b94,100 crore, with more being nurtured under the Next Generation Incubation Scheme.Tyagi stressed that Punjab\u2019s transformation will require coordinated action: industrial diversification, high-value manufacturing, digital MSME adoption, skill development, ease of doing business, and investment facilitation. \u201cThe framework is in place. What we now need is relentless execution, data-driven governance, and continuous stakeholder collaboration,\u201d he said.His closing message at the ET Make in India SME Regional Summit – Chandigarh was clear and urgent: the next decade must be one of strategic action. \u201cLet us move decisively from policy to prosperity,\u201d Tyagi urged.<\/p>\n