Rs 1.1 lakh crore loan scheme for COVID-affected sectors, announces FM

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday announced a loan guarantee scheme of Rs 1.1 lakh crore for the sectors affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The measures were announced in a bid to revive the economy battered by the pandemic.

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The health sector will receive Rs 50,000 crore for scaling up health infrastructure. Health and medical infrastructure of all the regions, other than the eight metropolitan cities will be looked at, the FM announced. “Here, the guarantee coverage will be for totally new projects (upto 75%) and projects underway (upto 50%),” she said. 

Rs 23,220 crore will be spent on public health this financial year with a special focus on child & pediatric care. This will also include the augmentation of human resources to rope in medical students, nurses and strengthening medical infrastructure.

For the tourism sector that has been badly hit by the second COVID wave, the FM said that once the international tourism resumes, the first 5 lakh tourists who’ll come to India will not have to pay visa fees. The scheme will be applicable till March 31, 2022, or will close after distribution of the first five lakh visas and one tourist can avail the benefit only once.

The Centre has extended the Atmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana from June 30, 2021 to March 31, 2022. Over 21.4 lakh people of nearly 80,000 establishments have already benefited, Sitharaman said about the scheme that was announced last year to incentivise job creation in the country.

This year, financial expenditure on the free distribution of ration to the poor will be Rs 93,869 crore, the Finance Ministry announced.

In a relief to farmers, they’ll get an additional protein-based fertilizer subsidy of nearly Rs 15,000 crores, the Centre has announced. 

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The Finance Ministry has also announced an additional Rs 1.5 lakh crore for ECLGS (Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme), in addition to the Rs 3 lakh crore given last year.