EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1. The economy of the Dharmapuri is agrarian in nature. Agriculture provides employment to nearly 74 % of the workforce. ( Para 3.2.1. Page No. 9 ). Agriculture accounted for over 70 % of the total credit under the Annual Credit Plan of the district. ( Para 4.6.3. Page No. 30 & 31 ). It provides basic raw material to a number of medium and large-scale units as well as small-scale units.



2. The district is one among the most backward and drought prone area in the state.



3. The basic strength of the district lies in its horticultural resources. The district forms the main horticulture belt in the state. It accounted for over 12 % of the area under horticulture in the state ( Para 3.2.3. Page 14 ). Horticulture supports a number of units in the district and there is vast scope for further development.



4. The district has the lowest literacy rate in the state. Incidentally, the same was the status during the 1991 census. Low literacy, among the men as well as women, has resulted in over dependence on agriculture for employment. This is one among the reasons for the economic backwardness of the district ( Para 3.1.2. Page 8 ).



5. There is no major power generation project except for the mini co-generation project. Hence the power requirement has to be met from the state grid. This has caused frequent fluctuations and power cuts often affecting industrial activity ( Para 4.3. Page 23 ).



6. The district has a well-developed banking network. But there is a wide variation over the years in the utilisation of funds by the banking sector. Moreover, the average deposits/credit of commercial banks in the district accounts for just two-third of the average deposit/credit of the state ( Para 4.6.1. Page 28 ).



7. The district is an industrially backward one. However, after the formation of the SIPCOT industrial Complex in Hosur a number of medium and large-scale units were started, most of them in and around Hosur. Presently 112 large-scale units are located in the district. Besides these, there were 10880 SSI units in the district as on 31.7.2001.



8. Though the district has significant growth in the industrial front during the last decade, even today the role of the industrial sector is marginal as compared to the agriculture and services sectors. The poor performance of the industrial sector can be judged from the following factors:

9. There is wide disparity among the blocks in terms of industrial activity. While Hosur and Dharmapuri together accounted for 50.8 % of the registered SSI units, the remaining 16 blocks accounted for the rest of the units ( Para 5.3.2 Page 42 ).
   
   Likewise, in terms of allocation of funds to the SSI sector, the Hosur and Dharmapuri blocks together corners nearly 71.61 % of the funds allotted to this sector, while blocks like Thally, Mathur, Veppanapalli, Bargur, Kelamangalam, Morappur, Palacode and Uthangarai etc accounted for less than one percentage each, which indicates the low level of industrial activity in these parts of the district ( Para 4.6.4 Page 32 ).



10. Of the total 18 blocks of the districts, 13 blocks are declared either ‘Backward’ or ‘Most backward’. This shows the present status of industrial activity in the district. Concerted efforts are needed to ensure balanced growth of the entire district ( Para 2.4.9. Page 6 ).



11. The Government sponsored schemes for industrial development need more attention. For example, the performance under PMRY Scheme is unsteady. There have been fluctuations in the achievement both in terms of number of units as well as amount financed. The achievement in term of number of cases is far below the target in many years. Moreover, the very low average amount disbursed per unit may make the units unviable in the long run ( Para 4.5.1. Page 27 ).



12. While most of the industrial units are located in Hosur taluk, most of the departments are located in the District Headquarters i.e. Dharmapuri, which is situated around 90 Kms. away. The journey to Dharmapuri (and Back) takes nearly 4 - 5 hours. For every problem the entrepreneur is forced to run to Dharmapuri instead of concentrating on his production schedule and marketing ( Para 5.8 Page 46 ).



13. Delay in the settlement of payments due to the small industry sector by medium and large scale industries adds to their financial problems. The Industrial Facilitation Council that has been set up in Coimbatore for the western districts including Dharmapuri under the Chairman-ship of the District Collector is expected to solve their problem to some extent even though it may not altogether wipe out the delay in the payment. There is an apprehension that recourse to the Facilitation Council may cause the small-scale sector to lose "future orders" from the defaulters. So popularising the concept of factoring services like discounting of bills etc by the commercial banks may solve the problem to some extent ( Para 5.8 Page 46 )



14. Paddy, Jowar, Mango, Tapioca, Coconut, Cotton, Sugarcane, Pulses, Groundnut Ragi & Samai are important crops of the district. This provides scope for more agro-based industries based on these products. The huge granite reserves provide scope for granite polishing units. Besides these, there is high scope for Electronic Products, Software & IT Enabled services, auto components, Jewellery making, Plastic and Electronic Toys, Cotton textiles & Garments, Sericulture based activity, Industrial alcohol, Mineral water, Drugs & Pharmaceuticals, Tartaric acid, Herbal Products and Recreational and Tourism based activities.



15. Both the Government of India and the Government of Tamilnadu provide various schemes and incentives for starting industries. However, the Schemes and the opportunities available in various fields should be propagated more vigorously by the Government and other agencies concerned with the development of industries so as to reach the aspiring entrepreneurs and to fully utilise the resources of the district.