Tranche-wise breakup of Rs 20 lakh crore package accessed; RBI's measures at 8 lakh crore

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday unveiled the final tranche of the Rs 20 lakh crore economic package that was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He had said that the FM will gradually provide the details of the economic relief package that, along with measures rolled out by the Reserve Bank of India, is worth Rs 20 lakh crore. Here is a complete breakdown of the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' package. 

First tranche 

Putting emphasis on PM's concept of Atmanirbhar India (self-reliant India), the FM announced the first tranche of the economic package of Rs 5,94,550 crore. It includes a list of 15 measures that focus on the factors of production- land, labour, liquidity, and others. 

• Rs. 3 lakh crore collateral-free automatic loans for business, including MSME-Emergency credit line extended to businesses including MSMEs from banks and NBFCs up to 20% of outstanding credit as on February 29,2020. This is set to benefit 45 lakh units.
• Rs. 20,000 crore subordinated debt for MSMEs- Centre will facilitate the provision of Rs.20,000 crore as subordinate debt for stressed MSMEs. 2 lakh MSMEs are likely to benefit. 
• Rs. 50,000 crore equity infusion through MSME Fund of Funds- As MSMEs face a severe shortage of equity, the Fund of Funds with a corpus of Rs.10,000 crore shall be set up. This shall provide equity funding for MSMEs with growth potential and encourage them to get listed on the main board of Stock Exchanges. 
• The new definition of MSMEs- The definition of MSMEs has been revised whereby investment limit shall be revised upwards. Also, an additional criteria of turnover is being introduced. Necessary amendments to the laws will be brought about.
• Global tenders to be disallowed up to Rs. 200 crore- Global tenders shall be prohibited in government procurement tenders up to Rs.200 crore as Indian companies have faced unfair competition from foreign companies. This is a crucial step towards a self-reliant India. 
• Other interventions for MSMEs- The Union government and Central Public Sector Enterprises will honour every MSME receivable in the next 45 days. E-market linkage shall be promoted as a replacement of trade fairs.
• Rs. 2500 crore EPF support for business and workers for 3 more months- The payment of 12% of employer and 12% of employee contributions made into the EPF accounts of eligible establishments shall continue for the months of June, July and August. Overall, liquidity relief of Rs.2500 crore will be provided to 72.22 lakh employees. 
• EPF contribution reduced for business and workers for 3 months- Statutory contribution of both employer and employee shall be reduced to 10% each from the existing 12% each for all establishments covered under EPFO. This move shall provide liquidity of Rs.6750 crore to employees and employers over a period of 3 months. 
• Rs.30,000 crore liquidity facility for NBFCs/HFCs/MFIs- The Centre will launch a Rs.30,000 crore special liquidity scheme to provide liquidity support for NBFC/HFCs/MFIs and mutual funds, creating confidence in the market.  
• Rs.45,000 crore Partial Credit Guarantee Scheme 2.0 for NBFCs- The existing PCGS scheme will be extended to cover borrowings such as the primary issuance of bonds/CPs of NBFCs, HFCs, and MFIs. It shall result in the liquidity of Rs.45,000 crore.
• Rs.90,000 crore liquidity injection for DISCOMs- As the revenue of power distribution companies have plummeted, liquidity of Rs.90,000 crore shall be infused in DISCOMs against receivables.
• Extension of registration and completion date of real estate projects under RERA- The registration and completion date of all registered projects expiring on or after March 25, 2020, shall be extended suo-moto by 6 months. It can be extended by a further period of up to 3 months if required. 
• Rs.50,000 crore liquidity through TDS/TCS reductions- The Tax Deduction at Source for non-salaried specified payments made to residents and rates of Tax Collection at Source for the specified receipts shall be reduced by 25% of the existing rates. This measure shall be applicable from May 14 until March 31, 2021, releasing liquidity of Rs.50,000 crore. 
• Other direct tax measures- The due date of all Income Tax return for the Fiscal Year 2019-20 shall be extended from July 31, 2020, and October 31, 2020, to November 30, 2020. Furthermore, the period of Vivad Se Vishwas scheme for making payment without additional payment will be extended to December 31, 2020. 
• Relief for contractors- All Central agencies such as Railways, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways shall extend construction work, service contracts, etc. by 6 months. 

Read: Swadeshi Jagran Manch lauds Centre over allowing only Indian tenders up to rs 200 cr

Second Tranche 

In the second tranche, the FM announced nine steps to aid migrant workers, street vendors, small farmers, and self-employed people of Rs 3,10,000 crore. She also extended several schemes for housing, street vendors and housing to provide relief till March 2021.

Meanwhile, apart from the nine measures, the government also announced reforming labour laws in the near future. The current 44 labour laws are being reduced to just 4 labour codes. The bill is currently in the parliamentary standing committee and will soon be introduced in parliament.

Migrants

• Free food-grain supply to all migrants for the next two months. Non-Cardholder Migrants shall be given five KG rice/wheat and one KG Chana per family for two months. This will help eight crore migrants and cost will be fully borne by the Central Government. 3500 crore will be spent on this. State Governments will be responsible for implementation & identification of migrants. 
• National portability of ration card with 'one Nation one ration card' will be implemented by August this year.  67 crore beneficiaries will gain in 23 states, using this ration card in any corner of the nation in the next three months. 83 percent of the entire PDS population will be covered in three months. 100% coverage of national portability will be achieved by March 2021.
• Affordable rental accommodation for migrant labour and the urban poor.  A rental housing scheme will be incentivized to build affordable housing and converting government housing into rental housing under PM Awas Yojana. We will be incentivizing manufacturing units, industries, and associations to build an affordable housing complex on their private land through PPP mode.

Shishu loans under MUDRA

• While loan moratorium has already been granted by the SBI, a 1500 crore interest subvention for MUDRA has been announced wherein the Centre will provide interest subvention of 2% for prompt payees for a period of employees. About three crore beneficiaries of MUDRA-Shishu loans will result in reducing 2% of interest rate in Shishu loans -  which comes to 1500 crores, borne by Centre.

Street vendors

• Rs. 5000 crore special credit facility for street vendors which will benefit 50 lakh street vendors. They will receive an initial working capital up to Rs 10000, within a month.

Housing

• 70,000 crore boost to housing sector & middle income group through the extension of Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme (CLSS) by extending the scheme till March 2021. As of date, 3.3 lakh middle income families have benefited. Additionally, 2.5 lakhs middle income families will benefit until 2021, leading to the investment of over Rs 70,000 crore.

Tribals

• Employment for tribals via Rs 6000 crores using Compensatory Afforestation Management & Planning Authority (CAMPA) Funds. This will create Job opportunities in Urban, Semi-urban & rural areas for Afforestation & plantation works.

Farmers

• 30,000 crore additional emergency working capital funding for farmers will be provided via NABARD. While 90,000 crore has already been sanctioned by NABARD, an additional Rs 30,000 crore will be pushed into this. This will benefit around 3 crore farmers to meet post-harvest (Rabi) & current Kharif requirement in May/June.
• Farmers holding Kisan Credit Cards will be provided concessional Credit boost amounting to Rs 2 lakh crore.  Fishermen & Animal husbandry farmers will also be included in this and 2.5 crore farmers will benefit from this.

Read: Siddaramaiah eyes next tranche of economic package; dons economist hat and rubbishes first

Third Tranche 

The Centre announced its third tranche of Rs 1,50,000 crore with 11 measures out of which eight of them focused on strengthening infrastructure, capacities, and building better logistics in Agriculture, Fisheries, and animal husbandry, while the rest three measures pertained to governance and administrative reforms. 

Agriculture infrastructure

• A finance facility of Rs 1 lakh crore for farm aggregators, FPOs for strengthening the farm gate infrastructure by funding Agriculture Infrastructure Projects, agriculture entrepreneurs, and post-harvest management infrastructure will be provided immediately. 
• Rs 10,000 crore scheme for the formalisation of Micro Food Enterprises: The fund for micro food enterprises (MFE)  will help 2 lakh MFEs using technical up-gradation, building brands, marketing. The focus will be to help the MFEs to become brands and reach the global level.
• Executing the scheme launched in the Budget 2020 immediately, the PM Matsya Sampada Yojana is allotting Rs 11,000 crore for marine, inland fisheries, and agriculture. Along with it, Rs 9000 crore will be allotted for infrastructure including fishing harbors, cold chains, markets, etc. The main focus to be on Islands, Himalayan states, NE & Aspirational districts.
• The Centre has launched a National Animal Disease Control Programme to ensure 100% vaccination of cattle, buffalo, sheep, goat & pig population which will cover 53 crore animals. The programme has an outlay of  Rs 13,343 crores since January 2020. 
•  An Animal Husbandary Infra Fund of Rs. 15000 crore will be set up to support private investment in dairy processing and cattle feed infrastructure. The incentive will be given for establishing plants that export niche (world-class) products.
• The National Medicinal Plants Board (NMPB) has supported 2.25 lakh hectare area for medical plant cultivation. An additional 10,00,000 hectares will be covered with the Rs 4000 crore fund in the next two years. Focusing on Ganga, NMPB will bring the 800-hectare area by developing a corridor of medicinal plants along the banks of Ganga.
• Beekeeping increases yield & quality of crops, hence the government will implement a Rs 500 crore scheme to aid honey production and wax production, marketing, storage, etc. This will increase the income of 2 lakh beekeepers.
• Operation Greens to be extended from tomatoes, onion, and potatoes to all fruits and vegetables. The scheme includes a 50% subsidy on transportation from surplus to deficient markets and a 50% subsidy on storage including cold storages on a pilot basis for 6 months.

Governance reforms

• The government will amend the  Essential Commodities Act which was enacted in 1955 to enable better price realization for farmers by attracting investments - making agriculture sector competitive. Agriculture foodstuff including cereals, edible oils, oilseeds, pulses, onions, and potato to be deregulated. 
• Agriculture marketing reforms to provide marketing choices- The government will bring agriculture marketing reforms to provide marketing choices to farmers via a Central law. 
• The Government of India will create a legal framework that will enable farmers for engaging with processors and aggregators, large retailers, exporters in a transparent way. Risk mitigation for farmers assured returns and quality standardization shall form an integral part of the framework.

Read: Centre unveils 7-step final economic tranche; MGNREGA & education boosted, new PSU policy

Fourth Tranche 

The Centre announced structural reforms in eight sectors in the fourth tranche of its economic package amid Coronavirus lockdown. The reforms introduced affect 8 sectors namely - Coal, defense production, minerals, civil aviation (Airports, Airspace Mgmt & MRO), power distribution in UTs, Space, and atomic energy.

Coal sector: Commercial mining in coal sector

Govt monopoly is being removed from coal to introduce competition and private sector participation by:

• Revenue sharing mechanism instead of the regime of fixed rupee/tonne
• Entry norms to be liberalized with  nearly 50 blocks to be offered immediately
• Rs 50,000 crore to be provided to be given for diversified ops including evacuation of Coal India Ltd's coal, Rs 18,000 crore worth investment in the mechanised transfer of coal
• Coal gasification/liquefication to be incentivized through rebate in revenue share

Mineral sector: Seamless exploration-cum-mining-cum-production regime

• The government is introducing a seamless composite exploration-cum-mining-cum-production regime. 500 mining blocks would be offered through open access. The government also announced the joint auction of Bauxite and coal mineral blocks to enhance the Aluminium industry, which will reduce the electricity cost of the Aluminium industry.
• The distinction between captive and non-captive mines removed, allowing the transfer of mineral leases and the sale of surplus unused minerals. Mineral Index for the different mineral process is on. The rationalism of stamp duty payable at the time of award of mining leases is introduced.

Defence production: Corporatisation not privatization of Ordance Factory Board

'Make in India' defence production to  notify:

• List of weapons for a ban on import with year-wise timelines
• Indigenization of imported spares will be given priority
• Separate budget provisioning for domestic procurement to reduce Defence import bill
• Corporatization of Ordance Factory Board to improve autonomy, accountability, and efficiency  in ordnance Supplies
• FDI limit in defence manufacturing under automatic route raised from 49% to 74%
• Time-bound defence procurement process to usher faster decision making, with overhauling of trial and testing procedures

Civil aviation: Airspace management, MRO hub in India, auction of airports

• Only 60% of Indian airspace is currently available. Hence, restrictions on the utilization of air space are eased to benefit about Rs 1000 crores per year. It will result in a reduction in fuel use, time, and positive environmental impact.
• Additional six airports are in the auction, adding to six airports up for auction on PPP basis. The first 2 rounds are expected to get Rs 13,000 crores.
• India will become a global hub for Aircraft Maintenance, repair & overhaul by rationalizing Tax regime for MRO ecosystem. Convergence between the defence sector and civil MROs to be established.

Power distribution in Union territories to be privatized

• The power distribution company in UT shall be privatized, announces the Centre. A tariff policy will be released focusing on consumer rights, promoting the industry, sustainability.
• Power department/utilities in the Union Territories will be privatized.

Social infrastructure to be revamped though Rs 8000 crore Viability Gap Funding scheme

• Boosting private sector investment in social infra through revamped viability gap funding scheme, the government will enhance the quantum of viability gap funding up to 30% each of total project cost as VGF aby Centre and states.

Private participation boost in Space exploration

Indian private sector will be allowed into the space industry to provide a level playing field for private companies in satellites, launches, and space-based services.

Private sectors will be allowed to use ISRO facilities

Future projects for planetary exploration, outer space travel to be open for the private sector

Atomic Energy-related reforms

• Government to establish research reactor in PPP mode for the production of medical isotopes
• Facilities in PPP mode to use irradiation technology for food preservation
• Technology development cum Incubation centers to be set up for co-ordination between research facilities and tech-entrepreneurs

Fifth Tranche

In the fifth and the last tranche of the Aatmanirbhar Bharat package, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced 7 steps namely for MNREGA, health and education, for states, and for easing of business.

• Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA): The government will now allocate an additional Rs 40000 crore under MNREGA. 
• Health - rural and urban areas including education: The government announced that the public expenditure on health will be increased. Infectious diseases hospital blocks will be built in all districts. Steps will be taken to implement the National Digital Health Blueprint. Steps will also be taken to strengthen lab network, surveillance, and research.
• Education: The FM announced that there will be one nation, one digital platform under the PM e-Vidya programme and there will be one class, one channel from Class 1 to Class 12. The FM also said that there will be extensive use of community radio and there will be special e-content for visually and hearing-impaired students. Top 100 universities will be permitted to start online courses by May 30.
• Business and COVID-19: In a major step to insulate the MSMEs, the FM announced that the minimum threshold to initiate insolvency proceeding will be one crore. She said that the special insolvency resolution framework will be set for MSMEs under Section 240A. Furthermore, the FM said that the Central government will have the power to exclude COVID 19 related debt from the definition of 'default' under the Code. 
• Decriminalization of Companies Act: The FM announced that the Centre will amend the companies' act under which 7 compoundable offenses will be dropped and 5 will be dealt with an alternative framework. She added that the 58 compoundable offences sections will be dealt with by the internal adjudication mechanism (IAM), while earlier only 18 were dealt by the same. 
• Ease of doing business and related issues: The FM announced that direct listing of securities will be permissible to Indian public companies. She also said that penalities for all defaults for small companies, one-person companies, producer companies & start-ups have been lowered.
• Public Sector Enterprises: In a major step, the FM said that the private sector will be allowed to participate in all sectors while the Public Sector Enterprise will continue to play important role in the defined area. She said that the government will announce strategic sectors requiring PSEs, and they will be notified. Furthermore, she said no more than 4 PSEs will be present in a notified sector. In other sectors, she said, PSEs will be privatized.
• State governments & related resources: The Centre announced that the borrowing limits of the States have been increased from 3% to 5% for 2020-2021. 

Read: FM Sitharaman to unveil final tranche of Rs 20 lakh crore package; summary thus far here