Laghu Udyog Bharati (LBU), a collective of around 40,000 small businesses in the country, has requested finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to reserve “manufacturing and marketing of traditional, conventional and low-technology products of mass consumption” for MSMEs. In a virtual pre-budget consultation meeting with Sitharaman, LBU said manufacturing of such products, consumed across geographies, is going into the hands of big corporates. “Hence, reservation in specific areas is a must for the sustenance of MSMEs where big businesses may not add any significant value.” There are items for masses such as bread, atta, bun, lassi packaging, rusks, various stationary items, and more which can be manufactured by SMEs instead of big corporates who now manufacture in-house. There are many such low-technology items in every sector which should be made by SMEs only. The association also suggested extending the NPA classification period to 180 days from 90 days for MSMEs as the working cycle of enterprises in many cases extends much beyond the 90-day period.