Industry Odisha Bureau, Aug 12: Governor Dr Hari Babu Kambhampati on Wednesday called for taking entrepreneurship deeper into Odisha’s rural and tribal regions, saying inclusive growth must create opportunities for youth, women, artisans and first-generation entrepreneurs across the State.
Addressing the 41st Foundation Day Celebration and Annual State Level Convention 2026 of the Odisha Assembly of Small and Medium Enterprises (OASME) here, the Governor said entrepreneurship must flourish if every young person is to have an opportunity, while enterprise must reach villages and smaller towns for them to prosper.
“Development must not be measured only by the size of industries or investments, but by the opportunities we create for our people,” he said, referring to the goals of Viksit Odisha 2036 and Viksit Bharat 2047.
Describing MSMEs as a powerful vehicle for translating people’s aspirations into reality, Kambhampati said the sector was not merely a component of the economy but a major source of employment, livelihoods and economic opportunities. Its strength, he said, lay in taking enterprise beyond major cities to towns, villages, tribal regions and aspirational districts.
The Governor further said MSMEs also provided a bridge between Odisha’s traditional strengths and modern aspirations by connecting artisans with global markets, agricultural produce with value-added industries and local skills with emerging technologies.
He appreciated Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi’s efforts to strengthen the State’s MSME ecosystem, citing initiatives such as interest reimbursement for MSMEs, support for food-processing enterprises and MSME clusters, and programmes promoting entrepreneurship and technology adoption.
Calling for stronger last-mile delivery of government support, Kambhampati urged the Government, financial institutions and industry associations to strengthen district-level facilitation, awareness, handholding and local entrepreneurship centres. Entrepreneurs should have easier access to finance, technology, training and markets, he added.
At the national level, he appreciated Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s focus on entrepreneurship, manufacturing and self-reliance and highlighted schemes including PMEGP, MUDRA, CGTMSE, Startup India, Stand-Up India, PM Vishwakarma, RAMP and the MSME Champions programme.
He also lauded OASME for its work in cluster development, common infrastructure, technology adoption, skill development, market access, industrial exhibitions and buyer-seller meets.
Calling for the MSME movement to penetrate Odisha’s interior regions, the Governor stressed the need for stronger local ecosystems, industrial clusters, connectivity, skills, finance and market linkages.
He advised MSMEs to embrace modern machinery, digital tools, artificial intelligence, renewable energy, quality certification and waste reduction to become more productive and sustainable.
Kambhampati also called for greater collaboration among Startups, universities, research institutions and established MSMEs to turn local ideas into globally competitive products.
Referring to geopolitical tensions in West Asia and India’s dependence on imported crude oil, the Governor urged MSMEs to promote sustainable mobility and gradually shift towards electric vehicles.
This, he said, would reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels, strengthen energy security and ease pressure on foreign exchange reserves.
Noting that his official convoy had already shifted to electric vehicles, he said collective behavioural changes could contribute to sustainable development and national self-reliance. He also appealed to participants to install rooftop solar systems to generate clean energy.
Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari, Industries Minister Sampad Chandra Swain, Additional Chief Secretary Hemant Sharma, MSME Secretary Rashmita Panda, NALCO Chairman-cum-Managing Director Bijendra Pratap Singh and OASME Secretary General Satwik Swain addressed the occasion.
