"To start an industry you need motivation and clear goals and SISI is there to help with information, advice and aid," he says. SISI, a part of a central government initiative, that has branches in most states, does around 90 percent of its programmes in association with NGOs and government bodies.

The Mumbai chapter which also has a branch in Aurangabad, brings out four project reports annually that are either new or updates of previous ones. These reports are frequently used as resource material by government agencies as well as business consultants. SISI also works as an educator, conductingseminars and taking up modernisation of units where either a panel or an existing business unit that has brought a proposal is involved, with 75 percent of the costs paid by the government.

"The unit can either identify a problem or SISI officers who visit the site can spot obsolescence and suggest modernisation," points out Pande.

Entrepreneurship development programmes at nominal costs are also conducted after eliciting response from a particular geographical area or on the topic mooted. The institute's economic information cell also brings out survey reports on the status and scope of various regions to emerge as business centres. Frequently, EDPs for women entrepreneurs are conducted and a recent programme drew over a 100 women in Mumbai alone. The State Bank of India is associated with the SISI through an MoU to assist financially.

What is of significant help is the ancillary development and identification programmes undertaken annually where buyers and sellers are brought together on selectedthemes. The SISI also offers marketing assistance which includes among others the Central Government Purchase Programme, a one-point contact counter: "once a unit registers with us it is automatically registered with the Central Government."

Another interesting feature of the SISI is its participation in international trade fairs. "The institute takes the sample products of the SSIs free of cost for display. It is a coveted opportunity for the units who would never be able to participate in fairs where a single sq ft of space could cost as much as Rs 20,000". The SISI annually attends six-seven fairs and shows 30-40 products in each. "Last year, the international trade exhibition at Johannesburg, generated trade enquiry worth over Rs 75 crore," informed Pande who was a member of the Indian delegation. However, there are times when units are unable to respond satisfactorily to trade enquiries that result from such fairs. Another yeoman service provided by SISI is in the laboratory and tool room wherejobwork for existing units is taken on a no-loss, no-profit basis but which would have been prohibitively expensive for the units to undertake on their own.

Best of all, is a free reading room at the SISI premises which has trade and business journals from various countries and from within as well. The SISI representative also assists the Director General for Foreign TRade on licenses to be issued for foreign trade, by giving recommendations and scrutinising applicants.

Started in 1954 initially on a recommendation by the Ford Foundation, today it covers the entire country. Currently, a special project for information technology called SINETis being implemented that will provide all information through the Internet for a nominal subscription.