Programme to Accelerate Development for MSME Advancement (PADMA)

What is PADMA in Haryana?

Programme to Accelerate Development for MSME Advancement (PADMA) is a five-year block-level economic transformation programme notified by the Industries and Commerce Department, Government of Haryana. PADMA was first notified in the Haryana Government Gazette on 29 November 2022 and re-notified on 17 August 2023 in supersession of the earlier notification, so the operative programme period runs to 16 August 2028.

The core idea is simple. Haryana has 143 blocks across 22 districts. The state has picked one focus product for each block, chosen on the basis of locally available raw material, the existing micro-enterprise ecosystem, demographic profile and growth potential. For each block, one new MSME industrial cluster is to be developed, with an indicative size of around 100 acres, and each cluster is expected to hold about 35 to 40 new micro and small enterprises plus Common Facility Centres.

According to the notification, Haryana has more than 9,70,000 MSMEs employing over 19 lakh persons, concentrated in automobiles, food and beverages, textiles, engineering and metals. The state-of-the-art medium units sit mostly in Panipat, Faridabad and Gurugram, while traditional micro and small units cluster in Panchkula, Ambala, Karnal, Rohtak and Kaithal. PADMA is the state's answer to that imbalance: instead of one more incentive on paper, it puts serviced land, sheds, testing labs and advisory desks inside the block where the entrepreneur already lives.

What are PADMA's targets?

• 143 new MSME clusters, one in each block, over about 4,000 acres.
• 10,000+ new enterprises enabled.
• New investment of Rs 25,000 to 30,000 crore.
• 3,00,000 new jobs, direct and indirect.
• Promotion of locally relevant products, so that farmers can move from producers to processors.

The Directorate of MSME is the nodal agency. HSIIDC establishes the clusters, develops infrastructure, constructs industrial sheds and allots plots. The Town and Country Planning Department helps identify land and clear CLUs and NOCs, the Skill Development and Industrial Training Department runs the skill-gap study and mobilises ITIs and polytechnics, and the Haryana Ground Water Authority verifies groundwater availability in each proposed PADMA block.

What does a PADMA cluster contain?

Every PADMA cluster must carry a defined set of facilities, which the implementing agency is required to build:

• 10 plug-and-play facilities in the form of industrial sheds or flatted factories, each at least 1,000 square yards, which the agency may only lease out to MSMEs at reasonable rates.
• A Common Facility Centre built at a cost of not less than Rs 1 crore and up to Rs 5 crore, tailored to the block's identified product, housing testing, design development, R&D, product development, common processing and marketing display facilities.
• A Business Development Centre and PADMA facilitation centre with a built-up area of at least 1,500 square yards, staffed as an advisory helpdesk covering backward and forward linkages, legal and regulatory support, business and financial linkages, incentive advisory and supply chain management.
• An exhibition and display centre of at least 1,000 square yards.

Optional facilities, which the State Level Steering Committee may make mandatory, include skill development centres, ICT infrastructure, common cold storage, a common packaging unit, zero liquid discharge treatment, a common boiler, a common warehouse or raw material depot, and a bank or NBFC branch inside the cluster.

Basic infrastructure covers site development, plots, boundary wall, roads, sewerage and effluent treatment, storm water drainage, water supply, electricity with backup, street lighting, parking, fire fighting, water harvesting and labour hostels and rest rooms.

What financial support does PADMA give?

Five sub-schemes were notified on 4 March 2024, all effective from 17 August 2023 and running to 16 August 2028.

1. PADMA Capital Investment Subsidy Scheme, for micro and small enterprises on eligible investment in plant, machinery and building, for new, expansion, diversification or modernisation projects.

An SHG must have at least 10 women members. The number of beneficiaries is capped: up to 20 units in the first 5 PADMA clusters, up to 10 units in clusters 6 to 15, up to 5 units in clusters from the 16th onward, and a total of 100 units outside PADMA blocks across the state on a first-come-first-served basis during the policy period.

2. PADMA Interest Subsidy Scheme: reimbursement of term loan interest at 6% per annum or the actual rate paid, whichever is less, up to Rs 20 lakh per financial year for units inside an approved cluster and Rs 10 lakh per financial year for new units outside it in the same block around the identified product. The subsidy runs for 5 consecutive financial years from the date of re-notification of the policy or the date of loan sanction or disbursement, whichever is later.

3. PADMA Entrepreneurship Acceleration Scheme; early-stage capital of Rs 20 lakh for a start-up inside an approved PADMA cluster and Rs 10 lakh outside it, for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market entry and commercialisation. Capped at 10 start-ups per cluster and 50 start-ups outside clusters during the policy period. A start-up qualifies for up to 10 years from incorporation, if turnover has never exceeded Rs 100 crore.

4. PADMA Designing, Branding, Marketing and Exports Promotion Scheme; reimbursement of 50% of marketing and branding spend, up to Rs 10 lakh a year inside a cluster and Rs 5 lakh a year outside it, covering e-commerce listing, market intelligence, logo and packaging design, digital marketing and sustainable packaging.

5. PADMA Cluster Infrastructure Development Scheme (PCIDS), for public and private implementing agencies, not individuals. Assistance of 50% in 'B' blocks, 75% in 'C' blocks and 85% in 'D' blocks, up to Rs 35 crore for up to 50 acres and Rs 45 crore for more than 50 acres. Minimum land is 25 acres in 'B' and 'C' blocks and 15 acres in 'D' blocks. Basic infrastructure cost is eligible only up to 60% of the eligible project cost, land cost is excluded, and assistance to 'B' blocks is capped at 20% of the total PCIDS budget.

Who is eligible under PADMA?

Who can benefit:

• Micro and small enterprises inside an approved PADMA cluster, for capital investment subsidy, interest subsidy and marketing assistance.
• Micro and small enterprises outside a cluster but located in the same block and working on that block's identified product, at half the inside-cluster rates.
• Start-ups within 10 years of incorporation as a private limited company, registered partnership firm or LLP, with turnover never above Rs 100 crore.
• Women, Scheduled Caste and self-help group owned units, who get the higher 30% capital subsidy slab.
• Public and private implementing agencies, including HSIIDC, for cluster infrastructure assistance under PCIDS.

Who cannot apply or is not eligible:

• Medium, large and mega enterprises — PADMA's financial sub-schemes are written for micro and small enterprises and start-ups only.
• Units in a block working on a product unrelated to that block's identified product, when applying from outside a cluster.
• Individuals seeking cluster infrastructure grants: PCIDS money goes to implementing agencies, not to a person, and the grant cannot be used to buy land.
• Applicants beyond the numerical caps for a given cluster, since each cluster has a hard limit on subsidised units.
• Aspiring entrepreneurs who have not completed the PADMA mentorship programme, who are not eligible for land allotment in a PADMA industrial park.

How to apply under PADMA

1. Find your block's identified product. Annexure-I of the PADMA notification lists one focus product for every block, for example kitchen appliances in Ambala City, scientific equipment in Ambala Cantt, guar gum products in Siwani, leather footwear in Hansi-I, and lithium ion batteries and components in Faridabad. Your project should align with it.
2. Complete your registrations. File Udyam Registration on the national portal and the Haryana Udhyam Memorandum on the Directorate of MSME site.
3. Enrol in the PADMA mentorship programme run through the Business Development Centres in the Common Facility Centres, and obtain the completion certificate. The policy makes this certificate a condition for land allotment in a PADMA park.
4. Apply for a plot or a plug-and-play shed to HSIIDC or the implementing agency for your block's cluster, in response to the Expression of Interest or application notice issued by the Directorate of MSME.
5. Set up the unit and start production, then file the relevant sub-scheme claim; capital investment subsidy, interest subsidy, entrepreneurship acceleration or marketing assistance: online through the Directorate of MSME portal, with the CA certificate, loan papers, invoices and category proof as applicable.
6. Route infrastructure proposals differently. An implementing agency wanting PCIDS assistance submits its proposal to the District Level Committee chaired by the Deputy Commissioner, which recommends it to the State Level Steering Committee chaired by the Administrative Secretary, Industries and Commerce, for approval.
7. Use the district facilitation helpdesk. The PADMA Project Management Unit runs cluster-level helpdesks in every district offering credit facilitation (loan syndication, guidance on loan products) and business facilitation (focus product advisory, regulatory approvals, compliance handholding, incentive advisory and marketing support).

How is PADMA governed and monitored?

PADMA runs on a three-tier structure:

• District Level Committee (DLC), chaired by the Deputy Commissioner, with the District MSME Centre head as Member Secretary and members from the District Industries Centre, HSIIDC, District Town Planner, District Skill Coordinator and the Lead Bank Manager. The DLC identifies and recommends land parcels and monitors on-ground handholding.
• State Level Steering Committee (SLSC), chaired by the Administrative Secretary, Industries and Commerce, with the DG MSME as Member Secretary and members from Finance, Industries and Commerce, HSIIDC, MSME Development Institute Karnal, SIDBI Chandigarh and PNB. The SLSC approves land parcels, CFC and BDC proposals, budgets and any change in a block's identified product.
• State Level Monitoring Committee (SLMC), chaired by the Chief Secretary, which sets overall direction and selects which blocks enter each phase.

Implementation is phased over five years: 15 blocks in phase 1, 25 in phase 2, 40 in phase 3, 40 in phase 4 and 20 in phase 5.

How is PADMA financed?

Infrastructure is funded through the State Industrial Infrastructure Development Scheme (SIIDS) and, for Common Facility Centres, the Haryana Mini Cluster Development Scheme under HEEP 2020, which gives up to 90% of project cost up to Rs 5 crore. Where a CFC costs more than Rs 5 crore, the implementing agency can use the central MSE-CDP scheme, which funds up to 70% for projects between Rs 5 crore and Rs 10 crore and 60% for projects between Rs 10 crore and Rs 30 crore, with Haryana adding 20%. For aspirational districts the central share rises to 80% and 70% respectively, with Haryana contributing 15%.

The state also draws on the TIES scheme of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, infrastructure schemes of the Ministry of Food Processing Industries and Ministry of Textiles, NABARD, and SIDBI's Cluster Development Fund.

Help and grievance redressal

• Directorate of MSME, Haryana: 0172-2580710, Plot No. C-3, HSVP Complex, Sector 6, Panchkula 134109.
• District MSME Centre in your district, which houses the PADMA facilitation helpdesk.
• PADMA scheme documents are published at msme.haryana.gov.in/padma-schemes.
• Haryana public grievance portal: harsamadhan.gov.in.

PADMA registration, mentorship and subsidy claims carry no departmental fee. A prospective entrepreneur should confirm the current status of the cluster in their block with the District MSME Centre before committing money, because the clusters are being rolled out in phases and not every block has one yet.

How to check your application status

PADMA does not run a single online tracker where an applicant types in a reference number and sees a status bar. Because the programme has three separate tracks (plot or shed allotment, sub-scheme subsidy claims, and PCIDS infrastructure proposals), follow-up works differently for each.

If you have applied for a plot or plug-and-play shed in a cluster:

1. Contact the implementing agency you applied to (HSIIDC in most clusters, or the named private implementing agency for that block) and quote the Expression of Interest reference or application number you were given at submission.
2. Visit or call the District MSME Centre in your district. It hosts the PADMA facilitation helpdesk and is the practical single point of contact for where your file stands between the District Level Committee and the implementing agency.
3. Ask specifically whether your cluster has moved past land acquisition and basic infrastructure into shed handover, since land parcels are being cleared and developed in phases and a "pending" status often just means your cluster has not reached that stage yet, not that anything is wrong with your application.

If you have filed a subsidy claim (capital investment subsidy, interest subsidy, entrepreneurship acceleration, or marketing and branding assistance):

1. Log back into the Directorate of MSME portal account you used to file the claim and check the application section for any status update or query raised by the reviewing officer.
2. If the portal shows no movement for several weeks, call the Directorate of MSME helpline, 0172-2580710, and quote your Udyam Registration number and the date you filed the claim.
3. Escalate through the District MSME Centre if the helpline cannot resolve it, since claim files often sit with the district office before being forwarded for state-level sanction.

If you have submitted a PCIDS infrastructure proposal as an implementing agency:

Proposals move from the District Level Committee (chaired by the Deputy Commissioner) to the State Level Steering Committee (chaired by the Administrative Secretary, Industries and Commerce) for approval. Status enquiries should go to the District Level Committee secretariat first, since it is the recommending body and typically knows whether a file has been forwarded, returned for clarification, or is awaiting an SLSC meeting date.

For unresolved delays or no response at all, use Haryana's public grievance portal, harsamadhan.gov.in, and file the grievance against the Directorate of MSME or the relevant implementing agency. Keep a written or emailed record of every call and visit, since PADMA's helpdesks work off manual case tracking rather than a searchable online database, and your own file of correspondence becomes the evidence if you need to escalate.

Before assuming a rejection, always confirm whether your block's cluster has actually reached the stage your application depends on. PADMA is being rolled out over five phases (15, 25, 40, 40 and 20 blocks respectively), so a claim or allotment can appear stalled simply because the cluster infrastructure it depends on has not been completed yet.

Common reasons for rejection

Your project does not match your block's identified product. PADMA's subsidy schemes are tied to a single focus product per block, listed in Annexure-I of the notification. Applying from outside a cluster for a product unrelated to your block's identified product is an automatic disqualifier under the policy, not a documentation gap. Fix: check Annexure-I for your block before you invest, and if your product genuinely does not fit, look at whether a neighbouring block's identified product matches your line of business instead.

Your enterprise falls outside the micro and small category. PADMA's financial sub-schemes, capital investment subsidy, interest subsidy, entrepreneurship acceleration and marketing assistance, are written for micro and small enterprises and start-ups only. Medium, large and mega enterprises are not eligible, however strong the rest of the application is. Fix: confirm your Udyam classification before applying, since a unit that has grown past the small-enterprise investment or turnover threshold since its last Udyam filing needs to update that classification, not assume it still qualifies.

Udyam Registration or the Haryana Udyam Memorandum is missing or mismatched. Subsidy claims are checked against these registrations, and gaps such as an outdated address, a different constitution of business (proprietorship versus LLP), or an unregistered new activity commonly cause claims to be returned. Fix: keep both registrations current and consistent with what you are actually claiming for before filing.

The mentorship completion certificate has not been obtained. The policy makes completion of the PADMA mentorship programme, run through the Business Development Centres, a condition for land allotment in a PADMA industrial park. An applicant who applies for a plot without this certificate is not eligible for allotment regardless of how strong the business case is. Fix: enrol early and complete the mentorship programme before applying for a plot, not after.

The cluster's numerical cap has already been reached. Each PADMA cluster has a hard ceiling on subsidised units (20 units in the first five clusters, 10 in clusters six to fifteen, five from the sixteenth cluster onward), and there is a state-wide cap of 100 units outside PADMA blocks, allotted first-come-first-served. An application filed after a cluster's cap is exhausted will not be approved no matter how complete the paperwork is. Fix: apply as early as possible in a cluster's rollout, and ask the District MSME Centre how many slots remain before investing time in a full application.

Loan and expenditure documentation does not support the claim. Capital investment subsidy and interest subsidy claims need a CA certificate, loan sanction and disbursement papers, invoices for plant, machinery and building expenditure, and category proof where a higher women, SC or SHG rate is claimed. A CA certificate that does not reconcile with the invoiced amounts, or an SHG claim without proof of at least ten women members, is a common point of rejection. Fix: get your CA certificate prepared against the actual paid invoices you are submitting, and keep SHG membership proof on file before filing the claim.

PCIDS proposals filed by individuals or for land cost. Cluster Infrastructure Development Scheme assistance is for public and private implementing agencies only, not individuals, and the assistance explicitly excludes land cost, with basic infrastructure cost eligible only up to 60% of the eligible project cost. A proposal that includes land acquisition cost or is filed by a person rather than a registered implementing agency will be sent back. Fix: route land cost separately and confirm your applicant entity is a recognised implementing agency before submitting a PCIDS proposal.

Start-up eligibility documents do not establish the incorporation window or turnover history. The Entrepreneurship Acceleration Scheme requires the applicant to be within ten years of incorporation as a private limited company, registered partnership or LLP, with turnover that has never crossed Rs 100 crore. Missing incorporation certificates or absent turnover declarations for all preceding years are common gaps. Fix: assemble incorporation proof and a signed turnover declaration covering every year since incorporation before filing, not just the most recent year.