Nod to MSME stimulus push

New Delhi, June 1

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The Union Cabinet on Monday formally approved all announcements relating to MSMEs as part of the Rs 20-lakh crore Covid stimulus package. The Cabinet also approved changes in the definition of MSMEs which was further fine-tuned after being announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on May 13.

“The Cabinet’s decisions will aid MSMEs to attract investments and create jobs,” said Union Minister Nitin Gadkari at a joint press conference with his Cabinet colleagues Prakash Javadekar and Narendra Singh Tomar.

The Cabinet approved a Rs 50,000-crore Distressed Assets’ Fund, with the government’s share at Rs 10,000 crore in order to help two lakh MSMEs that have the potential but need a little hand-holding due to the Covid disruption. The government will backstop 85 per cent for loans up to Rs 5 lakh and 75 per cent for loans beyond Rs 5 lakh from financial institutions.