Bhubaneswar: Odisha, currently a $120-billion economy, is targeting $500 billion by 2036 and $1.5 trillion by 2047, with MSMEs expected to play a critical role in creating jobs, promoting entrepreneurship and broadening participation in economic growth said Chief Secretary Anu Garg, at Outlook MSME Growth Conclave–Odisha 2026, in Bhubaneswar Thursday.
“The state currently accounts for around 2.89% of India’s GDP, and we aim to raise this share to 4% by 2036 and potentially 5% by 2047,” the Chief Secretary added. The roadmap for strengthening Odisha’s MSME ecosystem was discussed at the conclave, which brought together senior government officials, banking executives, industry representatives and other stakeholders to deliberate on access to finance, women entrepreneuarship, enterprise development and the challenges facing MSMEs.
Access to finance emerged as one of the central challenges for Odisha’s MSMEs at the conclave. Head – MSME Banking, Co-Lending & Supply Chain Finance, Bank of Baroda, Sunil Kumar Sharma, said Odisha’s MSMEs require an estimated Rs 4.8 lakh crore to Rs 5.5 lakh crore in funding support, while they are currently receiving only around Rs 1.2 lakh crore.
The issue of access to finance was further examined during the panel discussion titled ‘Unlocking Credit for Odisha’s MSMEs: What Works, What Doesn’t?’ The session brought the focus on the practical challenges involved in improving credit flow to MSMEs and the need to identify financing mechanisms that can help businesses move from small-scale operations to sustainable and scalable enterprises.
The discussions at the conclave underscored that credit access will be central to the state’s MSME growth story. The panel discussion along with deliberations on women-led entrepreneurship and the state’s broader economic roadmap, highlighted the need to make credit more accessible, appropriately structured and capable of supporting MSMEs as they scale.