GUWAHATI: The state health and finance minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma, along with the BJP Assam Pradesh president Ranjeet Kumar Dass, held a press meet to spell out the state’s plan to draw synergy from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's stimulus package of Rs 20 lakh crores. The press meet was held at the Assam Secretariat.
Earlier, the union finance ministry headed by Nirmala Sitharaman, over the course of five days, had spelled out the details of the stimulus package emphasizing that it has taken a number of steps to enhance credit availability with banks so that they continue to make loans available to all strategic and needy sectors of the economy to propel development. Elaborating on the same in the context of Assam, the state health and finance minister spoke in detail and offered explanations and clarifications.
The state finance minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma, said that under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, the state has provision for:
> 5 kg wheat or rice per person and 1 kg pulse per family for 3 months,
Rs 500 per Jan Dhan account holder per month; free gas cylinders to poor families,
> Increase in MNREGA wages to Rs 202 and an ex gratia of Rs 1,000 to poor senior citizens.
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Sarma also indicated that Assam's 66,000 MSMEs shall immensely benefit from government of India's massive relief measures including Rs 3 lakh crores offered as emergency working capital, Rs 50,000 crores through equity infusion and release of all payables from CPSEs which, he termed, is a golden opportunity for state's enterprises to thrive.
The minister lauded the move by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allocate an additional Rs 40,000 crores under MGNREGS, which will help generate nearly Rs 300 crore person days in total addressing need for more work including returning migrant workers in monsoon as well. This will benefit Assam immensely, said the minister.
Sarma said that innumerable street vendors in Assam would benefit from the Rs 5000 crore Special Credit Facility for Street Vendors. The initial working capital of up to Rs 10,000 will help them stabilise and scale up their businesses.
The minister gave the following as pointers to emphasize the direct benefits that Assam will get:
• Rs 1500 each to Assam's 1 crore women beneficiaries = Rs 1500 crores
• Rs 700 × 3 for cylinders under Ujjwala for 35 lakh beneficiaries = Rs 735 crores
• For 85 lakh old age, widow and divyang @ Rs 1000 each = Rs 85 crores
• COVID management = Rs 153 crores
Under the One Nation One Ration Card, migrants and their family members can avail Public Distribution System from any fair price shop in India by March 2021. This technology-driven reform will be beneficial especially during transit, announced Himanta Biswa Sarma.
Sarma added that the government of India has enhanced the resources position of Assam government by enhancing borrowing limit from 3% to 5% of GSDP. This will help the government to enable mobilization of an additional Rs 6,000 to 8,000 crores. This, the minister said, could go a long way in providing necessary resources to needy sectors and help in containing COVID.
In conclusion, the minister informed that the state has formed a special committee under Principal Secretary (Finance), Samir Kumar Sinha, with senior most secretaries of departments to draw a roadmap, following PM Narendra Modi's vision of Atma Nirbhar Bharat for Atma Nirbhar Assam.