The special package rolled out on Thursday for MSMEs to manufacture medical equipment is to ensure that the State becomes self-sufficient, a senior Industries Department official said. “Though we have masks and other equipment now, we are not sure how long this crisis will last. Instead of waiting for supplies from outside, the CM felt it was necessary that the State was self-sufficient,” he said.
Asked about the deadline of July 30 before which firms were to commence production, he said: “Yes, we expect the whole thing to go on for few more months. Otherwise, we could still become a supplier of these equipment, if we manufacture in surplus.”
Questioned about the status of the government’s earlier proposal of a Medipark, which was supposed to come up as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) with TIDCO and the Centre over 330 acre near Chengalpattu, at an estimated project cost of ₹220 crore, he said it was in the pipeline. “We expect the DPR to be completed by the end of this month,” the official said.
