Market Development Support Assistance: ₹5L Puducherry Trade Fair Subsidy — Frequently Asked Questions

It refunds part of the cost an industrial unit bears when it exhibits at an international trade fair. Three expense heads are covered: the rent paid for booth space, promotional literature, and display material. Other exhibition-related costs fall outside the scheme.

The scheme refunds 50% of eligible expenditure, subject to a maximum of ₹5,00,000. So a qualifying spend of ₹6 lakh converts to a ₹3 lakh claim, and the ₹5,00,000 ceiling is only reached once eligible spending touches ₹10 lakh.

Micro, small, medium and large industrial units are all covered, provided the unit is in Puducherry and its investment was made on or after 1 April 2017. It must also draw at least 60% of its total workforce from residents of the Union Territory. Two or more undertakings belonging to the same person, partners or directors can apply as separate entities if their locations and registrations are distinct.

Neither. The support is a subsidy handed over as a reimbursement, so the department takes no stake in the unit and nothing is repayable. The unit spends on the trade fair first and then claims its share back.

There is no fixed closing date — the scheme runs on a rolling basis. Individual timelines do apply, though. A new unit must lodge its claim within one year of obtaining its Entrepreneurs Memorandum Part-2, permanent registration or commencement of production certificate. An existing unit has one year from completing expansion, diversification or modernisation.

Yes. Prior approval from the Director of Industries is mandatory before the unit participates in any exhibition. Since it is a condition of eligibility, the approval should be in hand before the event rather than sought afterwards.

It depends on how the unit is financed. Where a bank or a government corporation such as PIPDIC has funded the unit, the subsidy is routed through that institution, usually to adjust against the existing loan or to support fixed assets and working capital. Self-financed units are paid directly. Disbursement may happen as one lump sum or in several installments, depending on the availability of funds.

Download the prescribed application form from the official website of the Directorate of Industries and Commerce, Puducherry. Fill in every mandatory field, attach self-attested copies of the documents the form requires, and submit the signed application to the concerned authority at the Directorate. Ask for an acknowledgement, and check that it carries the date and time of submission and a unique identification number where one is issued.

Yes. Fixed assets, plant and machinery included, cannot be transferred or disposed of for five years. The clock starts from the later of two dates — the day the application was submitted, or the day the subsidy was disbursed.

Yes. Additional investment made by a new or existing unit qualifies it for further subsidy even after an earlier claim has been settled, as long as the total remains within the specified ceiling limit.

No. DPIIT (Startup India) recognition is not listed as a mandatory requirement for Market Development Support Assistance: ₹5L Puducherry Trade Fair Subsidy, though having it can strengthen your application and unlock other benefits.

Market Development Support Assistance: ₹5L Puducherry Trade Fair Subsidy is offered by Industries and Commerce Department, Government of Puducherry, a government body. It is provided as non-dilutive funding.