Table 3: Impact of briquettes vs. firewood during harvest season (9–10 weeks)
Item
Calorific value (kcal)
Cost per tonne (Rs)
Consumption (tonnes)
Expenditure/day (Rs)
Firewood
2,400
5,000
10
50,000
Briquettes
3,800–4,400
1,000
6
Savings from innovation
4,000
6,000
Additional revenue potential (selling price per tonne, Rs)
4,000–5,000
44,000
7: Innovation Clusters Initiative
113
average processing plant—this is equivalent to nearly 100 kW of power per day, enough to power a processing plant for 16 hours. 3. Farming and storage protocols: The CSIR-CFTRI scientists experimented extensively with various pre- and post-harvest techniques designed to prevent the mangoes from rotting and to extend their shelf life by delaying ripening. These interventions are expected to increase the commercial value of the produce, especially since an extended shelf life for fresh mangoes opens new distant domestic and export markets for the farmers. 4. Diversified mango products: The CSIR-CFTRI was asked to suggest new products that would cater to wider tastes of the market. A hygienic form of mango fruit bar was developed to extend the working season for processing mango pulp and find new uses and markets for it. Additionally, local women’s selfhelp groups, which were already making thin papadams, were trained to make new types of pickles from raw mangoes.
Concluding remarks For governments and policy makers, stimulating and sustaining innovation in MSMEs clusters is critical to generating new employment and inclusive growth for a nation’s economy. Taking advantage of
pre-existing clusters and their organizations is vital, since it comprises industrial infrastructure that is already working along with peopleoriented networks and community programmes that are already serving their participants. Various cluster models have been attempted with scattered results, especially when top-down approaches are taken. NInC realized that determined local efforts are key to innovation model effectiveness, sustenance, and scaling up. This is particularly essential when dealing with a wide variety of industries and geographies. If innovation can become the responsibility of local organizations, stakeholders, and communities, where immediate benefits are felt, an initial push from government could be transformed to a local pull down the road. Several challenges arise in facilitating innovation at MSME clusters. For example, the government is not able to deal directly with local MSME units, whether through central or state or even local interventions. NInC had the insight to transform India’s hundreds of local industry associations, which already exist in clusters across the country, to become innovation actors, champions, and facilitators. Using these associations as larger representatives of the local industry made the cluster more attractive to external organizations because innovation partners see the industry association as a path to a larger market with a broader
reach via an institution with strong leadership. At both the national and state levels, NInC recommends the creation of small but agile innovation cluster teams at different levels of government. In India, it is expected these teams will be called Cluster Innovation Cells (another type of CIC) and be staffed by individuals experienced in business development. This special type of CIC will be housed within government, can support existing industry association CICs, enlist new industry associations to create CICs by showcasing successful case studies, develop new collaborative partners to expand local innovation ecosystems, formally monitor and analyse MSME clusters, and create communities that range from websites to physical communities that broaden relationships to stimulate beneficial network effects. NInC and the pilot clusters successfully enlisted motivated public and private institutions and local universities as partners to develop local innovation ecosystems and new products and processes. The initiative demonstrated that innovation at MSME industry clusters is peopleoriented, centred on collaboration, best managed locally by local participants, and can be self-sustained locally because true benefits are felt locally. The government’s role is to catalyse, facilitate, and inject handson innovation leadership, support, and confidence at local levels.
THE GLOBAL INNOVATION INDEX 2013
Source: Pilot field measurements from the KCDS and NInC, 2013.