Kollom: Small cashew clusters likely to empower industry

Kollom: The cashew industry sees a ray of hope the Industries Department decision to form a small-scale cashew processor cluster, based in Kollam.

As a preliminary step, the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MS-ME), lead bank, entrepreneurs, and small scale industries association held a meeting to discuss prospects of collecting raw materials and sourcing funds under the cluster.

The cluster-based business would help bring enterprises under the MSME and work together in the procurement of raw cashew, production, and distribution. 

The collective effort would help the industry overcome various impediments, including scarcity of material and labour, faced by individual units.

As part of the cluster, a public service centre and raw material distribution centre will be set up. The cluster will also get financial aid for the promotion of MSME. 

Entrepreneurs have raised their demand either to convert existing dues into long-term loans or avail of fresh loans after declaring moratorium on liabilities.

The district-level ban-kers committee convened in Kollam earlier had discussed a revival package proposed by some 22 banks. 

The package focused on providing entrepreneurs with fresh loans as additional working capital to restart the industry that had come to a grinding halt. 

Loans will be restructured so as to provide a term of 5 to 6 years.

The banks also put forward their demand for constituting an institutional framework to monitor the business after applying the revival package. 

As the moratorium declared on revenue recovery in the cashew sector ended on August 31, some 160 entrepreneurs are in trouble as their endeavours have been declared non-performing asset (NPA) by financiers.