The Village and Small Enterprise (VSE) sector not only has tremendous potential of development in the North Eastern Region (NER) of India, but also suits most to this region's natural endowment, human resources and sociological conditions. This sector also provides a great scope for women empowerment and thus reduction in gender-based inequalities in the society. This paper examines the prospects and constraints of development of the VSE sector in the NER with special reference to social, technological and infrastructural aspects.
The Village and Small Enterprises (VSE) in India have an age-old history. Artisans in different trades were needed to perform farming operations; to make furniture and fixture needed to build houses, clothes to wear, ornaments, jewelry and footwear to put on, and a plethora of other articles. They also supplied these articles to the town-dwellers and the rich. Side by side there were people who provided various services to the people in rural as well as urban areas. When Mahatma Gandhi pleaded for a thrust to be given to these trades and spoke of village-based tiny productive activities, he had, in fact, many things in mind. However, the planned development of India was inclined to large and heavy industries. Although with a concern of lesser order, village and small industries flourished and complemented the industrial economy of India. A synoptic view of the growth of small scale enterprises can be obtained from Table 1 and Figure 1. Its growth accelerated in the 1960s and continued unabated since then to cross 86,000 units (firms) in 1998.
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