The Indian machine tool industry which has set a growth target at a CAGR of 15 per cent during the 12th Five Year Plan period, has urged the Centre to set up a Machine Tool Technology Development Fund with a corpus of Rs 1,000 crore to help the industry source technology from companies abroad.

According to Vikram Sirur, President, Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers? Association (IMTMA), the key enabler for achieving the desired growth rate is to set up a technology development fund to support product development. Sirur said, the machine tool industry is overburdened with high interest rates and is unable to borrow funds from the banking sector to expand capacities.

Unlike China where the interest rates are in the range of 2-3 per cent, Indian industry has to pay more than 14 per cent which makes it unviable, he said, adding the IMTMA has proposed to the government to create a low interest revolving fund to help the industry.