MSMEs in Visakhapatnam get first instalment of pending incentives

AP Chambers lauds Chief Minister’s initiative

The MSME units in the district have been sanctioned ₹53 crore towards incentives pending since 2014, of which the first instalment of ₹28 crore was released on May 22.

While 276 MSME units have been benefited by the release of the incentives in the first phase, in the next instalment, 503 account holders will get ₹25.5 crore.

Lauding the initiative taken by Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy to help the MSMEs to overcome financial and marketing difficulties posed by the COVID-19 crisis, the office-bearers of AP Chambers of Commerce and Industry Federation (AP Chambers), said at a press conference here on Wednesday that several incentives were being given to the MSMEs under Restart Package during the lockdown period in spite of severe financial constraints faced by the State government.

AP Chambers former president G. Sambasiva Rao said releasing of ₹450 crore as the first instalment of industrial incentives between 2014-2019 would benefit nearly 10 lakh people working in 98,000 MSME units, who were facing hardship due to the lockdown.

Thanking the Chief Minister for his timely initiative to bring back the failing economy, Pydah Krishna Prasad, president-elect, AP Chambers, said the decision on working capital loans at low interests to the MSMEs with a repayable period of three years including moratorium period of six months for meeting liquidity crisis, was a step in the right direction.

Waiving of fixed charges/minimum demand charges for the month of April/May/June for the MSMEs would help them to cope with the economic impact of COVID-19, said K. Kumar Raja, vice-president, AP Chambers. The same would be deferred in the case of all other enterprises for the said period helping them restart operations.

Credit limit

Under the Restart Package, the credit limit for the MSMEs from the banks would be increased by 20% without any collateral security. Also, non-performing assets and stressed accounts were specially taken care of with separate package, said A.K. Balaji, director of AP Chambers.

Zonal chairman Sudhir Mulagada said the industries should log on to restart portal to avail of the benefits. He said the government’s purchase of items manufactured by the MSMEs had been increased with a timeline to complete payments within 45 days. It was highly commendable and help ease the liquidity crisis faced by the MSMEs, he added.