OdishaPlus Bureau
Union Government is striving to increase credit guarantee for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) to Rs Five lakh crore from the present Rs one lakh crore. Union Minister MSME Nitin Gadkari said on Tuesday that of the credit guarantee, 75 percent of the advances granted by financial institutions is guaranteed under the credit guarantee scheme of the Union Government.
He assured that the issues raised by the industry, especially the MSMEs, will be taken up for discussion with relevant Ministries and Departments. The Minister, speaking in a web seminar organized by FICCI, said that he is aware of their difficulties and realizes their importance to the economy.
He called upon the industry sector to work in tandem with Government and the banking sector and stressed that all sectors remaining strong is in the interest of each one of them.
Talking about the importance of liquidity in the market, Gadkari called upon the industry to look upon the present crisis as challenges and opportunities especially as some countries are looking to move away from their investments from China, and India can be one of the best options for them.
Dwelling upon the road sector he said that the Highways construction that reached a record level in 2019-20, should increase the pace by 2-3 times in the coming years to meet the growing needs of the infrastructure sector.
The Union Minister also informed that time taken in reaching decisions should be kept at the minimum possible to avoid delays.
In this direction, he has requested NHAI and its arbitration units to decide matters within 3 months. He said, for this purpose, he has requested all Chairmen of such bodies to work till 7 pm every day instead of 5 pm at present.
The Minister said they have already started to do, resulting in a resolution of 280 matters within a short time. Gadkari said that India should convert this crisis into an opportunity, accelerate infrastructure projects and win this war against corona to achieve economic growth.
He said the Indian industry should look at the current situation as a blessing in disguise and aim towards improving its export potential.
He added that bringing in Liquidity in the market is key at this time of crisis and to ensure that, NHAI has already started the process of settling all the pending claims and arbitration. The ministry had a definite plan to clear all legitimate claims more or less within 3 months.
Talking about doubling the pace of road and highway construction for FY 20-21, Gadkari mentioned that his ministry is working on a war footing and is committed to fight this battle and emerge victoriously.
To kick start the path to recovery for the road sector, the Ministry is open to restart projects at various locations with the condition that adequate measures will be taken to safeguard against the spread of coronavirus.