Chennai: Rajni Agarwal, CIA member and FIWE chairperson, submitted a list of suggestions to revive the MSME sector, to the Finance Minister, at the recently-held pre-budget consultative meeting.

This was done on the behalf of the Consortium of Indian Associations (CIA), a group of over 30 trade bodies and regional small and medium scale industry associations.

Some of the ideas included seeking the National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC) to implement a PDS like ration card system to micro enterprises for supply of essential raw materials at fair price and in small quantities atleast at Industrial estates/ parks to start with and make them available on credit basis.

A longstanding demand of the sector, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance has also recommended that tax on Long Term Capital Gains be abolished for all investments in MSME units.

The group has also asked for the ‘sale price’ to be competitive and lowered, and exempt GST for all enterprises coming under Micro (upto Rs five crore turnover) till March 2021. It will also save micro enterprise owners from going to third party agencies for filing and documentations and allow them to concentrate more on business.

The government should immediately consider waiver of interest on gold loans and also regulate private gold loan giving pawn brokers to charge reasonably and thrust all PSB to lend on gold loans at zero interest till March 2021, it said, apart from providing a stipend of Rs 6,000/ month to every student undergoing six months internships in a SME.

Extend all pending loans by one year with a base interest rate @repo rate on outstanding for this year and charge from 21 April at normal interest as applicable. There shall be No EMI payable till April 2021. All Banks and FI shall be asked to restructure all pending loans, in consultation with the units/ loanees, the committee sought.