Hyderabad, Sep 17: The Confederation of Indian Industry, as part of the 25th edition of the Energy Efficiency Summit 2026, organised a special programme on “Greening of MSME initiatives – Accelerating Cleantech Adoption through Technology, Finance and Partnerships” at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre, Hyderabad. The programme brought together government, industry, technology providers, financial stakeholders and MSMEs to deliberate on accelerating the adoption of clean technologies and advancing industrial decarbonisation among micro, small and medium enterprises.
The “Greening of MSMEs in Telangana” initiative under the RAMP Programme, implemented by the Research and Innovation Circle of Hyderabad with CII as the technical partner, is targeting around 2,000 MSMEs across industrial clusters and manufacturing sectors. A key component is the undertaking of 2,000 Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production assessments, identifying opportunities for energy and material efficiency, water conservation, waste reduction, renewable energy adoption and carbon emission reduction. The initiative will further support MSMEs through technology demonstrations, capacity building, stakeholder engagement and implementation support.
Mr. D Srinivas Naik, Additional Director, Industries Department, Government of Telangana, delivering the keynote address on the importance of enabling MSMEs to adopt greener technologies, emphasised
“Greening of MSMEs is not only an environmental issue—it is an economic necessity. When MSMEs focus on energy efficiency, waste reduction, resource optimization and clean production, they can reduce cost and improve competitiveness. Our recent energy audits across hundreds of MSMEs have shown both carbon reduction and significant monetary savings, proving that sustainability and profitability go hand in hand. The Telangana Industries Department is committed to supporting MSMEs through guidance, incentives and faster approvals, including reforms that simplify compliance and facilitation mechanisms. We encourage MSMEs to work collectively with industry associations and government schemes to achieve greener growth.”
The programme marked an important step towards strengthening the ecosystem for MSME greening with the launch of a Marketplace Portal for accelerating the greening of MSMEs by Mr. D Srinivas Naik, Additional Director, Industries Department, Government of Telangana. The portal was designed to facilitate access to relevant solutions and technologies and support MSMEs in moving from assessment and identification of opportunities towards implementation. A video demonstration of the marketplace was also featured during the programme.
Mr. Madhukar Babu, Joint Director–MSME, Industries Department, Government of Telangana, delivered a keynote address said,
“Greening MSMEs can change the course of industrialisation in Telangana and across India. The real competitive advantage often comes from small savings—small interventions added up consistently, which translate into big cost reductions over time. What matters is making this journey easy for MSMEs: a guided, end-to-end approach where assessments lead to clear actions and measurable savings, with someone supporting the enterprise through each step. With platforms like this, and with industry bodies, innovators and the government working together combining on-ground execution with the government’s reach, we can take clean-tech and efficiency benefits to the grassroots level.”
Mr. Tejpreet Singh Chopra, Chairman, Energy Efficiency Summit 2026 and Founder & CEO, BLP-Industry.AI, in his special address on green industrial growth, said,
“MSMEs are a critical engine of India’s economy with around 74 million enterprises employing nearly 320 million people, contributing roughly 30% of GDP and 50% of exports. If we want energy efficiency and productivity to reach the grassroots, we must make advanced technology adoptable at the factory-floor level. The shift from formulating a research report to implementation—deploying a small edge ‘supercomputer’ that can run trained industrial AI models locally, so MSMEs can use AI for energy efficiency, productivity, safety and quality without the cost and complexity of large cloud-based projects. This is where India can scale impact.”
Addressing the program on the role of innovation in industrial decarbonisation, Mr. Srinivas Cherla, Director of Sustainability, RICH, said,
“At RICH, we believe real impact is possible only through collaboration—government, industry associations, MSMEs and innovators working together. Under the World Bank–funded RAMP program, Telangana’s Industries Department has engaged RICH to lead the initiative, with CII driving much of the field and technical implementation. When we engaged MSMEs, the pain points were clear: rising energy costs, effluent and waste handling, and low process efficiencies—along with the challenge of choosing the right technology from many options.”
Reinforcing the need for stronger collaboration between government, industry, innovators, technology providers and financial institutions, the initiative aims to create a scalable pathway for Telangana’s MSMEs to strengthen their long-term competitiveness and resilience.