Laghu Udyog Bharati

Weekly Insights for Entrepreneurs

Govt Integrates ODOP & DEH Initiatives To Strengthen District-Level Manufacturing & Exports

The One District, One Product (ODOP) initiative, led by the DPIIT, has been integrated with the Districts as Export Hubs (DEH) initiative—spearheaded by the DGFT.
Under the initiative, districts develop a District Export Action Plan (DEAP) that outlines strategies for strengthening product quality, scaling production capacity, improving infrastructure, and enhancing market access.
The government is facilitating MSME participation in international markets through the International Cooperation Scheme, which provides financial support for attending trade fairs, exhibitions, and buyer-seller meets abroad.
Furthermore, digital marketing and e-commerce training are embedded within the Procurement and Marketing Support and MSME Trade Enablement and Marketing (MSME TEAM) schemes to equip enterprises for evolving market dynamics.

Business confidence among MSMEs improved in Q1 FY26: Sidbi survey

The Composite MSME Business Confidence Index (M-BCI) rose to 63.75 during the quarter under review from 60.82 in the previous quarter. A value above 50 suggests positive sentiment.
Manufacturing and trading MSMEs drove the gains, while the services sector remained stable with a marginal decline, it showed.
The MSME Business Expectations Index (M-BEI), reflecting the outlook for upcoming quarters, stood at 62.19 for July-September and 67.88 for the first quarter of the next fiscal, suggesting sustained optimism despite headwinds like global tariffs and trade volatility.
The report also indicated that fewer MSMEs experienced a rise in borrowing costs, indicating early signs of transmission from the Reserve Bank of India's cumulative 100 basis point repo rate cut since February 2025.

New MSME Credit Model Slashes Loan Approval Time To One Day, 99K Applications Sanctioned

Under the new model, credit decision is based on objective data/ transactional behaviour and credit history of the borrower. Further, credit request submission and assessment is done entirely through digital process which reduces subjectivity, fraudulent submission of credit information and error in decision making.
This enables faster, transparent and more objective assessment of creditworthiness using system-generated credit logic and scorecards.
The benefits to MSMEs by use of this model include submission of application from anywhere through online mode, reduced paperwork and branch visit, instant in-principle sanction through digital mode, seamless processing of credit proposals, reduced TAT, credit decision based on objective data/ transactional behaviour among others.

Design Linked Incentive Scheme For Semiconductors To Support Startups & MSMEs

The scheme specifically targets startups, MSMEs, and other domestic firms, with the objective of reducing high entry barriers and promoting the commercialisation of locally designed semiconductor products.
To support early-stage development, the DLI Scheme offers design infrastructure, including access to Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tools and Intellectual Property (IP) cores.
Eligible applicants can receive financial incentives of up to 50 percent of approved costs, capped at Rs 15 crore per application, for design prototyping and scaling.
Additionally, companies can avail performance-linked incentives ranging from 6 percent to 4 percent of net sales turnover for five years, capped at Rs 30 crore per application, to support product deployment and commercialisation.

India Opens Rolling Call for Quantum Startups Under National Mission

India’s Department of Science and Technology has launched a rolling call for startup proposals under its National Quantum Mission to accelerate domestic innovation in quantum technologies.
Eligible startups must focus on one of four areas—computing, communication, sensing and metrology, or materials and devices—and apply through a corresponding Thematic Hub at a top academic institution.
The program offers more than funding, providing scientific mentorship, infrastructure access, and academic partnerships to help startups move toward commercialization.

Semiconductor mission pushes India from being aspirant to becoming global powerhouse

The mission is aimed at fostering chip manufacturing, packaging, testing, and design capabilities. It also promotes collaboration between academia and industry to boost R&D and develop a highly skilled talent pool.
India's chip market stood at approximately USD 38 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to USD 100-110 billion by 2030.
India's design ecosystem is also seeing rapid growth. The recent inauguration of 3-nanometer chip design centres in Noida and Bengaluru marked a breakthrough in high-end chip innovation.
The DLI scheme has supported as many as 22 startups with Rs 234 crore in funding. These companies are designing chips for critical applications such as CCTV surveillance, mobile networks, smart devices, and automotive systems.
Over 85,000 engineers are being trained in advanced semiconductor and electronics manufacturing.

Tata Motors to drive Iveco’s CV business for $4.4 billion, the group's biggest cross border M&A since Corus

Iveco manufactures commercial trucks, powertrains, buses and other specialty vehicles. Iveco Group clocked Euro 15.2 billion in turnover in CY24.
\“This is a logical next step following the demerger of the Tata Motors Commercial Vehicle business and will allow the combined group to compete on a truly global basis with two strategic home markets in India and Europe,\” said N Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Group.
The acquisition comes as the global CV industry is going through a rapid transition toward electric and hydrogen-powered drivetrains as well as autonomous driving.
In June, Toyota and Germany’s Daimler Truck finalised a roughly $6.4 billion merger of their heavy goods vehicle businesses.

New order! Factory activity touches 16-month high in July

India's manufacturing activity rose to a 16-month high of 59.1 in July, driven by robust growth in new orders, output and stock of purchases. The HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), compiled by S&P Global, was 58.4 in June 2025 and 58.1 in July 2024. <>br /> Sales rose at the fastest pace in around five years, propelling production growth to a 15-month high-well above the series average.
"Granular data showed that this acceleration (in production growth) was confined to the intermediate goods segment as rates of increase slowed elsewhere," the survey said.
On pricing front, inflationary pressures edged up in July. Rising prices of raw materials such as aluminium, leather, rubber and steel pushed input costs.

Central banks are building a haven of bullion assets

Central bank gold appetite, although not as voracious as the 1,000-tonne-a-year purchases in the past three calendar years, remains largely undiminished globally as this group of institutional buyers diversifies its asset base beyond the customary dollar-denominated holdings in a world increasingly strewn with tariff snags.
The central banks' gold purchases fit perfectly into the de-dollarisation theme, where countries want to diversify their foreign exchange reserves. Though the dollar is still dominant in FX reserves, its share is coming down drastically, with gold benefiting from this shift.
Historically, US Treasury yields and gold prices were inversely related. That relationship has broken now. So even as yields are expected to remain above 4.30%, gold demand prices may also remain high.

Is a US recession imminent? A wake-up call as Trump’s tariff shock meets collapsing job growth and Wall Street flashes crisis signals

The U.S. added only 73,000 jobs, far short of projections. Adding to the concern, job gains from May and June were slashed by a combined 258,000—essentially erasing most of the perceived progress from earlier months.
With the unemployment rate rising to 4.2% and labor force participation dropping for the third month straight, economists now warn that these aren’t seasonal trends—they may point to a long-term economic slowdown.
Everyday Americans are already feeling the pressure:
Job prospects are weakening, especially in industries exposed to global trade.
Prices are rising as tariffs take hold—from electronics to groceries.
401(k)s and retirement savings are vulnerable as markets wobble.
Mortgage rates might fall, but that may not offset the pain of job insecurity.

IIT-K develops 3 assistive techs for ‘special’ people

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, has developed three revolutionary assistive technologies — a Haptic Smartwatch, Assistive App for Dyslexia and Dysgraphia (AACDD) and Single Refreshable Braille Cell Learning Device — to support the visually impaired and children with learning disabilities.
Haptic Smartwatch is designed for people who are blind or have low vision. Unlike regular smartwatches that give audio alerts, this one uses gentle vibrations that users can feel on their wrist.
AACDD is a Hindi learning app made for children with reading and writing difficulties. It helps kids from classes 1 to 5 using a fun, three-level method.
The Single Refreshable Braille Cell Learning Device helps blind students learn Braille more easily. It has a single Braille cell (raised dots) that learners can touch and feel. It also gives feedback while the user interacts with it, helping them learn each character one by one.
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CSIR-IIIM develops India’s first scientifically authenticated Lavender honey

Developed under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research’s (CSIR) Floriculture Mission, the honey is being positioned as a science-backed, market-ready product with export potential.
Lavender cultivation in Jammu and Kashmir, promoted by CSIR-IIIM under the CSIR Aroma Mission, has seen widespread adoption across hilly regions and was referred to by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the \“Purple Revolution\” .
CSIR-IIIM has also introduced a new bioenterprise model integrating lavender and apiculture into high-density apple orchards to enhance sustainability and productivity. The fragrant, nectar-rich lavender plants support pollinator biodiversity, improve honey yields, and enhance fruit set in apple crops.

Innovators of TiHAN at IIT-Hyderabad develop heavy payload drone to use as air ambulance

The ambulance will be an autonomous vehicle that can reach from one point to another without any operational help from humans.
It can carry up to 200 kgs of payload. It can also be used as an air cargo vehicle and as an air taxi in metro cities.
The drone can also be used in rescue operations during natural disasters like floods, fire accidents and even during wars.
Meanwhile, TiHAN innovators are also working on improving the endurance of these drones by using materials that can withstand high temperatures during fire accidents.

ISRO Sets Up Station In Ladakh To Simulate Life On Moon, Mars

The ISRO has set up the Himalayan Outpost for Planetary Exploration (HOPE) in Ladakh's Tso Kar Valley. It is a high-altitude, Mars-like environment selected to test life-support systems and technologies for future lunar and Martian missions.
The analogue mission is part of a growing international movement to study how humans might survive and thrive in extra-terrestrial environments by replicating the harsh conditions of other planets on Earth.
Scientists from institutions like IIT Bombay, IIT Hyderabad, IIST Trivandrum, RGCB Trivandrum and the Institute of Aerospace Medicine in Bengaluru are leading several experiments. They are studying how isolation affects the body and mind, testing health-monitoring tools, and trying out methods for working on planetary surfaces and collecting microbes. The results will help shape safety plans, equipment and systems for future space missions.

‘Boost to India’s defence’: DRDO successfully tests UAV-Launched Precision Missile ULPGM-V3; key features

The ULM-ER, an extended-range variant of DRDO's UAV-Launched Precision Guided Munition (ULPGM) air-to-surface missile, features passive homing with an imaging infrared (IR) seeker for both day and night operations, according to DRDO website citing Janes news.
The 12.5 kg fire-and-forget missile is powered by a small dualthrust solid propulsion unit, enabling it to achieve a maximum range of 4 km during the day and 2.5 km at night.
Communication is facilitated via a two-way datalink. With multiple warhead options, the munition is designed to engage various static and moving targets.

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