Telangana IT and Industries Minister K T Rama Rao today once again requested the BJP-led Centre to offer financial support and fresh loans to the MSMEs of the state which, he said, had suffered huge losses during the current pandemic.
He wrote a letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on the matter and urged her to take immediate action in this regard.
Rao also asserted that the cancellation of loan interests, as well as the issuance of fresh loans, would help revive the pandemic-hit MSMEs.
"During the Covid-19 pandemic, most companies faced heavy losses as their products were not sold or shifted, and scores of their workers migrated back home. Employees were not paid as the companies could not cope with the losses. In this situation, the Centre needs to take steps to offer fresh loans and extend moratoriums, and cancel interest on existing loans. Hyderabad is surrounded by many such MSMEs that have been left crippled by losses incurred during the lockdowns," the minister explained.
"During the pandemic, raw material was not received. Production was further hindered by this. On behalf of the MSMEs of the state, I urge the Centre to take action to support the companies. By taking action, we can provide the necessary boost to these small and micro-level companies to get back on their feet," he added.
This is not the first time KTR has made such an appeal.
Last month too, he had urged the Centre to "redefine" its Atma Nirbhar Bharat scheme to
help Telangana's industrial sector.
"Due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdown, many medium and small-sized industries are today facing losses. They are struggling to continue production and keep their shutters open. There is, therefore, an urgent need to redefine the Atma Nirbhar Bharat scheme so that it can extend its support to this struggling sector," he had stated in a letter addressed to Sitharaman.