(MENAFN- KNN India) New Delhi, Nov 12 (KNN) Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday chaired the third pre-Budget consultation with representatives from the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector in New Delhi, as part of preparations for the Union Budget 2026-27.

The meeting was attended by Minister of State, Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, senior officials from the Ministry of Finance, and representatives from the Ministry of MSME.

Industry representatives included Meetu Puri, President, Confederation of Women Entrepreneurs (COWE); S.K. Jain, President, Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (FISME); Arvind Mehta, President, All India Plastics Manufacturers Association (AIPMA); Selvam Ramamoorthy, Executive Director, Council for Leather Exports (CLE); and Om Prakash Gupta, All-India General Secretary, Laghu Udyog Bharti, among others.

Discussions centred on challenges faced by MSMEs and measures to enhance their growth, competitiveness, and contribution to the economy, reported ANI.

In a post on X, the Finance Ministry noted, "Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs @nsitharaman chairs the third Pre-Budget Consultation with the stakeholders from Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in connection with the forthcoming Union Budget 2026-27"

The government began its annual pre-Budget deliberations earlier this week, with the Finance Minister holding the first consultation on Monday with leading economists.

These interactions form part of a series of meetings held each year to gather inputs from various sectors before finalising the Union Budget.

The consultations with economists and agriculture experts marked the initial phase of the engagement process for Budget 2026-27.

(KNN Bureau)

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