Finance Minister Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman today announced the fifth and last tranche of stimulus package under the Aatm Nirbhar Bharat towards building a self-reliant India.

 

7 Focus areas of the last tranche :

1. MGNREGA, 2. Health,  3. Education,  4. Business and Covid-19,  5. Companies Act,  6. Ease of Doing Business and 7. Central and State PSUs.

 

Key announcements are

• Borrowing limit of states’ hiked to 5%, 
• additional Rs 40,000 crore allocation for MGNREGS, 
• New Public Enterprises Policy to be announced,
• Outlay for public health to go up 
• Thrust on technology driven education,

 

Sector wise details

MGNREGS

• To provide a fillip to employment, Government will now allocate an additional Rs 40,000 crore under MGNREGS; move will help generate nearly 300 crore person days in total.  This will address the demand for more work, especially for the migrant workers returning home.

 

Health

Government has committed Rs. 15,000 crore for health related measures so far for containment of Covid -19 which includes Rs 50 lakh insurance per person for health professionals under #PMGKY.  Rs 4,113 crores released to states.  Leveraging technology, eSanjeevani telemedicine service and Aarogya Setu self care and contact tracing App launched. Domestic production of PPE has taken off.  Today there are more than 300 PPE manufacturers in the country.

• To prepare #India for any future pandemics Government will increase Public Expenditure on Health and invest in grass root health institutions.
• All districts will have infectious diseases hospital blocks.
• National Digital Health Mission blue print will be prepared.

 

Education  

Government ensured that education of students does not suffer during the lockdown period.  Since not all students have access to internet, teaching programmes were broadcast through Swayam Prabha DTH channels.

• Technology-driven education to be the focus: PM eVIDYA - a programme for multi-mode access to digital/online education to be launched immediately;
• PM eVidya will include extensive use of community radio and pod-casts.  Special digital content for divyang children.
• Top 100 universities will be permitted to automatically start online courses by 30th May.

 

Business and Covid-19

• With an eye on further enhancement of Ease of Doing Business Government has announced suspension of fresh initiation of insolvency proceedings up to one year;
• COVID 19 related debt to be excluded from the definition of “default” under IBC
• For MSMEs a special insolvency framework will be notified under Section 240-A of IBC.
• Minimum threshold to initiate insolvency proceedings raised to Rs 1 crore from the earlier Rs 1 lakhs.  This will benefit most MSMEs.

 

Companies Act – decriminalization of certain offences

• Government moves to decriminalise Companies Act defaults; 7 compoundable offences altogether dropped and 5 to be dealt with under alternative framework.
• Majority of the compoundable offences sections to be shifted to Internal Adjudication Mechanism.
• Amendments will declog National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT)

 

Ease of Doing Business

Further key reforms for Ease of Doing Business are in the pipeline:

• Indian public companies can list their securities directly in permissible foreign jurisdictions.

• Private companies which list Non-Convertible Debentures on stock exchanges will not be regarded as listed companies.

 

Public Sector Enterprises

• A new Public Sector Enterprise Policy will be announced.

• In strategic sectors, at least one enterprise will remain in the public sector but private sector will also be allowed
• In other sectors, PSEs will be privatized

 

State finances

• In view of the unprecedented situation, the Centre has decided to accede to the State’s request to increase the borrowing limit from 3% to 5% of GSDP.  This enhancement will give Rs 4.28 lakh crores of additional resources for states.
• States have so far borrowed only 14% of their earlier 3% limit which entailed resources of Rs 6.4l lakh crores.

 

PS : Detailed Press Release will follow.

 

MD/PK

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