Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and

Industry
The Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DICCI) is an Indian association that
promotes business enterprises for Dalits.[1] It was founded in 2005 by Milind Kamble.[2] Some of
the key members of DICCI are Kalpana Saroj, Chandra Bhan Prasad and Rajesh Saraiya.

Organization[edit]
DICCI has 29 state chapters and 7 international chapters. Members of DICCI come from diverse
range of manufacturing, services and construction sectors. It organizes trade fairs and training
camps among other things, and carries out promotional activities for the Dalit MSMEs.[3] The
organization is headquartered in Pune.[4]

Activities[edit]

 In 2013, DICCI announced to float ₹500 crore venture capital fund to

promote SC/ST entrepreneurs. SIDBI became first investor in the fund by announcing Rs 10
crore.[5]
 In February 2015, Telangana CM Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao announced one acre
of land in Hyderabad and ₹5 crore financial assistance for setting up of a Dalit entrepreneur
incubation centre.[6][7]
The Pune-based Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DICCI) was established in
2005 by Milind Kamble, a civil engineer and entrepreneur. While Mr. Kamble is currently the
Chairman, the organization has grown with the help of 29 state chapters & 7 International
Chapters. Its membership base is rapidly expanding as more Dalit entrepreneurs become
aware of its activities and what it can offer them.
The activities of its members are quite diversified ranging from manufacturing (sectors such
as chemicals, agri-products, frozen foods, plastics, textiles, pest control, metals and
metallurgy, marine engineering, solar energy, sugar refining), construction and services
(health care, hospitality industries, education and international trade).
The Chamber operates with a three-fold mandate :

 Bring together all Dalit entrepreneurs under one umbrella

 Become a one-stop Resource Center for existing and aspiring Dalit entrepreneurs

 Promote entrepreneurship among Dalits as a solution to their socio-economic

problems
Challenges for DICCI
As we chart out the future course of action, we confront many challenges in terms of
fostering entrepreneurship among the community: a) availability of early-stage funding; b)
creating professional Entrepreneurship Development Programs (EDPs) tailored for their
needs without ignoring their social setting, and; c) helping existing Dalit entrepreneurs scale
up their operations and grow.
 A) The legacy model of ‘collateral based lending’ preferred by traditional FIs creates an entry
barrier to aspiring Dalit entrepreneurs as they rarely possess assets that can be
collateralized. However, it is not clear how far it will be feasible to create an ‘early stage
funding Venture Capital mechanism’ as an alternative.
B) Establishing EDPs as professionally run programs, not exclusively for Dalits (to avoid
ghettoization and expand their professional networks).
C) Creating / accessing professional funds that can invest in Dalit businesses that are on the
growth trajectory.
A major challenge for DICCI is how to create/prescribe benchmarks for its members in terms
of how and from where to access capital and pitfalls thereof, and where to turn for advice
and mentoring. The DICCI and its members face a large knowledge gap about the
complexities, opportunities and risks in harnessing the financial sector.
DICCI – On the path of learning and enrichment through Networking and Knowledge
exchange.

 Business Trade Fairs.

 Seminars & Workshops.

 Interaction with Industry and Government.

 Share the Information on latest trends & opportunities

DCCI RepresentsCCI Represents

 Member – National Board of Ministry of MSME.
 Member - BFSI, National Skill Development Council.
 Member - CII, Affirmative Action Council.
 Member - CII, National Executive Council.
 Member - Consultative Committee of DG & SD.
 Member - Consultative Committee of DMIC.
 Member- Monetary Policy Consultative Committee-RBI
 Member - Dr. B. R. Ambedkar 125Th Birth Anniversary Celebration Committee under
Chairmanship of the Hon. Prime Minister of India.
 Board Member - National Board of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises - Ministry of MSME
GOI.
 Governing Board Member - Indira Gandhi Open University (IGNOU) New Delhi.
 Governing Board Member - Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDI) –
Ahmedabad.
 Governing Board Member - Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), Ministry of
External Affairs, GOI.
 Member - Stand-Up-India Steering Committee under Chairmanship of Hon Finance Minister.
 Co Chair - India-Malaysia CEO’s Forum.
 Member - Maharashtra Development Board.
 Chairman – Advisory Board of Sc/St Hub. Ministry of MSME, GOI.
 Executive Council Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Technology University (DBATU) Lonare,
Raigad. GOM
 Guest Faculty – IAS Academy Mussoorie. (LBSNAA) - For Mid Carrier Training of IAS.

BENEFITS OF DALIT

 As a DICCI member, you will get access to a world of opportunities.

 Mentoring

 Channelizing your inputs in economic and industrial policy through close linkage with
the government.

 Opportunity to interact with Central and State Government Administration for policy
intervention.

 Business Networking

 Financial & Tax Management & Assistance

 Industry Linkages

 Quality Management Services (QMS) certification Guidance

 Guidance in setting up of new company.

 Training

 Business Trade Fair, Exhibitions, B2B & B2C meetings.

 Conferences & Seminars

 Awards & Recognitions

 Updates by Email Notification.

 Access to member company profiles.

 Access to DICCI events and publications.

ELIGIBILITY
Categories :
1. Members : Any Company or Firm in India engaged in manufacturing activity or providing
consultancy services (Engineering / Technical / Management) or present in the services
sector including Trading, Banks, Financial Institutions, Law Firms, Hospitals, Travel/Tourism
& Hospitality, Films, Media: Print and Electronic, Digital Entertainment, Advertising,
Publishing, Fashion are eligible.
2. Global Members :
Representative offices of foreign companies operating in India as Liaison Offices under the
approval of Reserve Bank of India are eligible.
3. Affiliated / Institutional Members  :
National or Regional Professional Institutes / Organisations / Boards of industry interests
dealing with collection and dissemination of information, research & development, technical
up-gradation processes, exploration of new resources, etc. as distinct from industry
Associations / Councils / Organisations are eligible.
4. Start up Member : Newly started business.
Membership Eligibility :

 Any Company or Firm promoted by SC/ST entrepreneurs in India or Abroad with

majority stake holding above 51%.

 The company can be engaged in manufacturing services and trading

Membership Admission Procedure :
For admission as a member of the DICCI, a company or a firm shall make an application in
writing to the Head Office of DICCI on the prescribed form, which shall be signed by the
applicant.
1. Member : Formal application to accompany annual report / audited accounts, company
profile, entrance fee, proof of the latest investment figure (either a registration certificate or
a certification by the auditors / authority (for a small / medium scale company), certificate
of incorporation (for a newly established company).
2. Global Member :
Formal application to accompany with approved copy for opening liaison office in India &
copy of annual report of parent company.
3. Affiliation / Institutional Member : Formal application to accompany Memorandum &
Rules of association / institution, list of Governing Council, last annual report & audited
accounts, note on annual membership subscription, if any, of association / institution, list of
members, payment, etc

4. Membership Fee :

Platinum – Life Time Membership – Amount Rs. 1,00,000.00 (INC OF GST)

Gold – Membership of 15 Years – Amount Rs. 50,000.00 (INC OF GST)

Silver – Membership of 10 Years – Amount Rs. 25000.00 (INC OF GST)

Regular -Membership for 1 Year – Amount Rs. 5000.00 (INC OF GST)

Start -UP Membership for 1 Year – Amount Rs. 2000.00 (INC OF GST)

Definition of Micro, Small, Medium and Large Enterprise :

REVISED CLASSIFICATION APPLICABLE W.E.F 1ST JULY 2020

Composite Criteria: Investment in Plant & Machinery/equipment and

Annual Turnover

Classification Micro Small Medium

Manufacturing Investment in Plant and Investment in Investment in Plant and

Enterprises and Machinery Plant and Machinery or
Enterprises or Equipment: Machinery or Equipment:
rendering Services Not more than Rs.1 crore Equipment: Not more than Rs.50
and Annual Turnover ; not Not more than crore and Annual
more than Rs. 5 crore Rs.10 crore and Turnover ; not more than
Annual Turnover ; Rs. 250 crore
not more than Rs.
50 crore

Membership Disqualification :

 Any member after admission as a member is indulged in any criminal & financial miss
appropriation charges, found is liable to be expelled from the membership.

 Any member who’s conduct is found to be the against the interest and rules and
regulations of DICCI is liable to expelled from the membership.

 Second dalit chamber of commerce

launched in New Delhi

India’s dalit businessmen, rarely successful and rarely heard, are pushing for voice platforms.

South Asia’s second chamber for poor opened in the Delhi on Tuesday, January 30, 2017, its
members were assured by the organisers there will be more butter on their bread, even trips to snow-
clad Davos.
Interestingly, there is one such chamber for the backward class, Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce
and Industry (DICCI), already operating in Mumbai. But organisers of the one floated on January 30,
2018 argued that they wanted to operate from the Indian Capital, home to all chamber of commerce,
the ruling government and opposition.

“It is important to stay close to the power centre,” says Inder Iqbal Singh Atwal, the newly appointed
director general of Dr Ambedkar Chamber of Commerce (DACC). What is important is that the
DACC is largely an idea and still on paper, the members are yet to find a building in the Indian capital
to start working (read lobbying) for the poor.

But the agenda is set, and the move has been welcomed by those who have been in the market for
long, namely, the powerful Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Federation of Indian Chamber of
Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and Associated Chamber of Commerce (ASSOCHAM).

“We have some great dalit businessmen in India, will create some more capitalists in an year,” says
Atwal. He will be backed by Dr G. Vivekanand, son of former central minister (late) G. Venkata
Swamy, and also chairman of Vishaka Steel. Vivekanand, an advisor to the Telangana government, is
also the president of Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA).

The ruling NDA government, realising the importance of the initiative in the run up to the national
polls – there are enough speculations that it will be held this year – pitched in its support. Minister of
State for Social Justice and Empowerment, Ramdas Bandu Athawale, said it was time India helped
entrepreneurs from dalit community. The minister even said it could be a milestone crusade in India’s
economic history, his words sounding prophetic days before the annual Budget.

Dalits and people belonging to backward castes in India have a whopping 65 per cent plus population
majority but rarely benefitted from the formal systems of business that exist in the country. Repeated
studies have proved how bulk of India’s wealth stays with a handful of elites.

“Let people from backward castes turn entrepreneurs and shape their businesses,” said Athawale.

DACC hopes to be the much-needed bridge so that dalit businessmen get formal documents and legal
structures common in the West, and eventually function productively. In India, those belonging to the
lower strata often use their homes as collateral for loans to expand businesses and can’t trade things
beyond the small circle where they are known and trusted. “But this needs to change because the poor
must know they are not living outside the law and they are entitled to loans to start businesses,” said
Atwal.

India’s poor versus rich dialogue is taking a serious shape. This week, Congress president Rahul
Gandhi took to Twitter to ask PM Narendra Modi why 1 per cent of India’s population had 73 per
cent of the country’s wealth. This was soon after Modi addressed the plenary session of WEF at
Davos.

Gandhi quoted an Oxfam survey which claimed that 73 per cent of India’s wealth generated in 2017
was accumulated by only 1 per cent of the population.

But the Congress President was silenced when the Mumbai-based DICCI shared some interesting
figures that said a whopping Rs 473,000 crore disbursed in loans by the government were availed by a
huge 10 crore 40 lakh something population from the backward class, including SC/STs, an indication
that the poor want to turn entrepreneurs and not seek jobs.

“Why some people thrive and others don’t no longer holds good in India, the poor is now moving
ahead,” said DICCI president Milind Kamble.

Kamble said no one should expect a gold rush in India like it happened in the US in 1800s when
miners squatted and staked their claims with shotguns. “Dalit chamber are now coming forward to do
hand holding and push the poor out of poverty,” he said.

Commerce Ministry statistics show that in India only one crore backward people aimed to become
entrepreneurs in 2001, the figure is almost close to 11 crores in 2017.

And it is the responsibility, claims Atwal, of chamber like DACC to ensure economic empowerment
of India’s backward classes. On paper, it seems a herculean task, but certainly achievable, especially
if your chamber is close to the country’s power centre.

SC-ST creamy layer is

insignificant, inequalities
still glaring: Dalit
chamber of commerce
New Delhi: Unfilled vacancies under reserved categories,
increasing social inequalities, need for reservation in private sector
— these are some of the observations by the Dalit Indian Chamber
of Commerce and Industry (DICCI) that prepared a report
commissioned by the Union Ministry of Social Justice and
Empowerment on the progress of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled
Tribes (SCs & STs) in seven decades since Independence.

The report also dismissed the ‘creamy layer’ concept, saying their

number is “insignificant” in a population of over 200 million.

“The objective of this report was to analyse the exact situation of

SCs & STs and where they have reached in the last seven decades.
The DICCI submitted a draft to the ministry with some suggestions
in February so the government can create policy support. The final
draft will be submitted soon,” Milind Kamble, founder-chairman of
DICCI, told ThePrint.

R. Subrahmanyam, Secretary, Social Justice and Empowerment,

confirmed that the ministry has received the draft report. “We have
the draft report but the final report is yet to come. We will send our
comments this week,” he said.

Unfilled reservations, no creamy layer

According to the draft report, accessed by ThePrint, despite
reservations for SCs, STs and Other Backward Classes (OBCs), these
seats in government jobs and education have not been duly filled.

“Even one third of the reservation vacancies could not be filled up in

the first 25 years. It took 40 years to fill 50% of the ‘Group A’
reserved vacancies and 30 years for ‘Group B’. In ‘Group C’ it took
45 years to reach full scale of reservation,” the report observed. At
the same time, the Scheduled Castes have lost 3,18,969 jobs due to
privatisation, it added.
In terms of jobs in educational institutions too, these vacancies are
largely unfilled, with 75 per cent and 55 per cent vacancies for SCs
in universities for the post of professor and assistant professor,
respectively, lying vacant, according to the report.

Rebutting the concept of a ‘creamy layer’ referring to socially and

economically affluent members of these communities, the report
said there is no such thing. “The total Scheduled Caste “Group A”
and “Group B” employment in the public sector is about 3,38,606.
Their political representation in the Legislatures is about a
thousand individuals. This is the Creamy Layer of Scheduled Castes.
In a 200 million plus population this is an insignificant number,”
the report said.

Reservation in private sector

The report also pushes for reservation in the private sector.

“Our research has shown that even if employment opportunities

under reservations go up to their fullest capacity, they cannot even
cater to more than 1 per cent of the population. To benefit the entire
population, the only source is entrepreneurship opportunities that
we have identified in many areas,” DICCI president Ravi Kumar
Narra told ThePrint.

“One, create reservations in civil contracts, mechanical contracts,

irrigation. This can cater to the majority of the population even in
the rural areas. Whenever there are mega projects, the government
can give sub-contracts — that work has to be reserved for SC/STs.
Second, the government can create reservations in dealerships in
railways and airports where vendors and stalls are needed. Finally,
the franchisee model that includes ones like KFC for instance — if
they can stipulate that staff will have some reservation for SC/STs,”
he added.
Job losses during pandemic
The report has noted that while SC-STs own micro and small
enterprises, there is zero ownership of any medium enterprises by
people of these communities.

“The Scheduled Castes own 76,06,560 micro and small units, but do
not have a single medium unit,” it said.

Even in land ownership, the scales are tipped in the favour of upper
castes, according to the report. “The Scheduled Castes average land
holding is smaller than half of the National Average Holding of
0.592 ha,” the report said.

During the pandemic too, these communities have been hit the
hardest in terms of job losses. The report noted that while only 7 per
cent upper castes lost jobs during the pandemic, “it was 20% for the
Scheduled Castes; 15% for the Scheduled Tribes and 14% for the
OBCs during the peak period of the pandemic”.

Suggestions
In its suggestions to the ministry, the report has recommended a
special recruitment drive to fill vacancies, a special law in the class
of Labour Laws regulating jobs and job security for Scheduled
Castes in the private sector, and creation of self-employment and
wage employment avenues to minimise their employment for casual
labour and dependence on MGNREGA.

The report also recommended that “Central and State Governments

and the Public Sector Banks should vigorously encourage the
Scheduled Castes start-ups to ensure that they set up 29-30 lakh
MSMEs in half a decade to match their presence in the sector in
proportion to their population”.
Focus on implementation
DICCI officials said the suggestions in the report only require policy
change. “These reservations don’t require any investment from the
government, rather only a policy change is required to help these
communities. If a person is born as SC in 1947 and their condition
hasn’t changed in 70 years then what is the purpose of
independence?” Narra said.

However, experts ThePrint spoke to said the focus should also be on

sincerity in implementation of the existing provisions.

“What is needed is sincerity and honesty implementing the

constitutional provisions and mandate. Earlier tactic of converting
the reserved posts into general posts by not filing them till the term
ended so they can be converted to general seats ended after the SC’s
intervention. But this has led to a situation where you have done
this for so long that the numbers that should have been there in
universities and elsewhere are simply not there,” said Apoorvanand,
professor, Delhi University.

He also said budget allocations need to increase. “Without

budgetary allocation and clear policy, how do you encourage people
to go for self employment? Where is the training or education or
even the money to invest?”
BIBLIOGRAPHY
https://www.theweek.in/news/biz-tech/breaking-barriers-second-dalit-chamber-of-
commerce-opened-in-Delhi.html
https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Defying_the_Odds/sSz_AwAAQBAJ?
hl=en&gbpv=1&kptab=overview
https://dicci.in/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalit_Indian_Chamber_of_Commerce_and_Industry
https://theprint.in/india/sc-st-creamy-layer-is-insignificant-inequalities-still-glaring-dalit-
chamber-of-commerce/639027/