MSMEs must scale, innovate and go global to power India’s growth: Rajnath Singh

Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) will be a critical pillar of India’s economic growth and self-reliance, asserting that the country cannot depend solely on large corporate houses to achieve rapid and inclusive development.

“Earlier today I reviewed the performance of all 16 DPSUsin New Delhi. Nearly, 16,000 MSMEs are connected with India’s Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs), underlining the growing role of smaller enterprises in defence manufacturing, technology and innovation," said Singh while addressing the 35th Central Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Indian Industries Association (IIA) in Greater Noida.

Notably, India’s defence public sector undertakings (DPSUs) recorded a 151.2% surge in exports in FY26, while their combined turnover rose 15.4% to Rs 1.29 lakh crore, according to the Defence Ministry. The DPSUs posted a combined profit after tax of Rs 23,136 crore in FY26, marking a 15.6% increase over the previous year.


"We aspire for an India that is globally competitive in technology, manufacturing and innovation, creates employment opportunities for its youth and is strategically self-reliant,” Singh said.

He said the role of MSMEs in building Viksit Bharat is “extremely important”, pointing to initiatives such as iDEX and ADITI, which have enabled startups and smaller enterprises to participate in defence, artificial intelligence and advanced technology.

“Our goal is clear — Make in India, Make for India and Make for the World,” Singh said, urging Indian MSMEs to establish a global identity based on quality, reliability and innovation.

Singh called on MSMEs to move beyond the domestic market and compete globally. He said enterprises must adopt zero-defect manufacturing while simultaneously improving productivity, innovation and cost competitiveness.

“With zero-defect manufacturing, we have to move beyond domestic market leadership and become global players, because the progress of MSMEs is the progress of India,” he said.

The Defence Minister also highlighted the importance of intellectual property creation. MSMEs adopting modern technologies and participating in defence manufacturing, he said, are increasingly moving beyond manufacturing products to creating intellectual property that can strengthen both national security and the wider economy.

He said India’s free trade agreements (FTAs) would provide MSMEs with greater access to international markets, but cautioned that market access alone would not be enough.

“In today’s world, it is not enough to produce high-quality products. We need to produce products of globally competitive quality, at low cost, with high levels of innovation,” Singh said.

“These FTA networks open up a vast ocean of opportunities for global trade and exports for MSMEs and industries. They must fully leverage these international partnerships and trade agreements through government schemes such as Credit Guarantee Expansion and GST Rationalisation, and take Indian products to every corner of the globe. Our manufacturing vision must be guided by the principle of ‘Make in India, Make for India, and Make for the World,” he said.

Singh urged MSMEs to focus on scaling up, technology adoption, market access and workforce skilling, particularly as artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing reshape global industry.

He stressed that technology and innovation can improve productivity and competitiveness, but enterprises also need access to larger domestic and international markets if they are to scale sustainably.

Industry associations, he said, have an important role to play in bridging the gap between government and MSMEs by helping enterprises understand and leverage emerging opportunities.

“MSMEs will become even more important in the coming years. If India has to develop rapidly, we cannot depend only on large corporate houses. MSMEs have to be an equally important pillar of our growth,” Singh said.

Meanwhile, IIA National President Dinesh Goyal welcomed the guests and participating entrepreneurs and reiterated the association’s commitment to advancing the interests of the MSME sector. Greater Noida Chapter Chairman Sarbjit Singh emphasised the importance of active member participation in strengthening the organisation and enabling it to effectively raise issues concerning MSMEs.