The office an entrepreneur actually deals with: District Industries Centres and the Industries Extension Officer

Background

The Kerala Legislature has published the SARAL Keralam Bill, 2026 on 15-10-2026, a Bill on simplified and accelerated regulatory approvals and licensing, so the department that grants those approvals on the ground is worth knowing.
The Directorate of Industries & Commerce Department is located at Vikas Bhavan, Thiruvananthapuram, and is headed by the Director of Industries & Commerce.
The district level machinery of the directorate is situated at District Industries Centres, each headed by a General Manager.
Below them are Taluk Industries Offices headed by Assistant District Industries Officers.
Industries Extension Officers are deployed in all Block Panchayaths, Municipalities and Corporations, which is the point at which a small enterprise meets the department.
There are two Common Facility Service Centres under the Directorate, at Changanassery for rubber and plastic and at Manjeri for rubber, along with a Documentation Centre at Vellayambalam.
The directorate's hierarchy runs from the Director as head of department through Additional Directors, Joint Directors, Deputy Directors, Assistant Directors and Deputy Registrars down to Assistant District Industries Officers and Assistant Registrars.
A Women Industries Officer within the directorate handles matters related to women industries, and separate officers hold charge of technical consultancy, financial coordination, planning and monitoring, and infrastructure development.