More than 39,000 compliances reduced for ease of doing business: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that for enhancing of ease of doing business, more  than 39,000 compliances have been reduced.

In order to boost ease of doing business, over 34,000 legal provisions have been decriminalized said FM Sitharaman in her budget speech.

A revamped credit guarantee scheme for MSMEs with an outlay of ₹9,000 crore will be launched from April 1, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Wednesday.

Sitharaman also said that an announced infusion is expected to enable additional collateral-free guaranteed credit of ₹2 lakh crore and reduce cost of credit by 1 percent.

"Last year, I proposed revamping of the credit guarantee scheme for MSMEs. I am happy to announce that the revamped scheme will take effect 22 from April 1, 2023 through infusion of ₹9,000 crore in the corpus," Sitharaman said in an speech.

"If MSMEs fail to execute contract, 95 per cent of performance security will be returned to small business as part of Vivad Se Vishwas," said Sitharaman.

“The Vivad Se Vishwas scheme, declared by FM Nirmala Sitharaman in the Budget 2023, provides a ray of light to failed MSMEs. MSMEs will receive 95% of the performance security from the government under this scheme in cases of failure to execute contracts. The credit guarantee programme for MSMEs had a rocky start, but by getting banks on board and encouraging them to lend, the scheme has helped reduce stress in the sector. According to the FM, the updated Credit Guarantee Scheme for MSMEs would go into operation on April 1, 2023, with an injection of ₹9000 crore into the corpus. This will permit an additional ₹2 lakh crore in collateral-free credit guarantees, lowering the cost of credit by 1%. Calling MSMEs the “growth engines of the economy”, FM extended the benefits of presumptive taxation to micro-enterprises with a turnover of up to 2 crores,” said Delphin Varghese, Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer at Adcounty Media.

MSME credit assurance It was proposed last year to revamp the credit guarantee scheme for MSMEs. The revamp scheme, with a corpus infusion of 9000 crores, will go into effect on April 1, 2023. This will enable another two lakh crores of rupees in collateral-free guaranteed credit. Credit costs will also be reduced by about 1%. The infusion of ₹9,000 crore into the corpus of the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) should allow for better and broader scheme implementation, as well as improved claim meeting. This decision is expected to offer a significant benefit to India's MSME sector, which is regarded as a major economic growth driver. Supplemental collateral-free credit is expected to aid MSMEs in meeting the obstacles posed by the global epidemic and allowing them to continue to grow and create employment. It could be a positive step in safeguarding the well-being and expansion of India's MSME sector.

“Assistance to MSMEs continues in line with last year’s expectation for Budget 2023. Budget 2023 is providing wings to India’s growth story with special focus on investment increased expenditure, employment and ease of doing business. Revamped credit guarantee scheme will take effect from April 1, 2023, through the infusion of ₹9,000 Cr in the corpus. This enables additional collateral-free credit of ₹2 lakh crore to MSMEs and will enable to lower cost of credit by 1% as proposed by FM Nirmala Sitharaman. This comes off as a great news for MSMEs that are still recovering from the impact of pandemic. Budget 2023 has stood up to the expectation of including supportive measures aimed at democratising credit and speeding up financial inclusion,” said Ashish Aggarwal, Director, Acube Ventures

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has proposed to use PAN card as as a common identifier for all digital system at government agencies. The move is expected to simplify KYC process and make it simple for the Income Tax Department and other government agencies to manage documents of the PAN cardholders.

"For the business establishments required to have a permanent account number, the PAN will be used as a common identifier for all digital systems of specified government agencies," she said.

“Existing legislation will be changed to make compliance easier - a single point of contact for SEZ, GSTN, and IFSC registration will be established. Vivad se Vishwaas, MSMEs Relief – In the event of non-performance, the government will reimburse 95% of the contract money to provide relief. PAN will be used as a unique identifier for all digital systems of the government agencies listed,” said Amit Gupta, MD, SAG Infotech.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said the Budget for 2023-24 hopes to build on the foundation of the previous budget and blue print for India@100.

“The world has recognized India as a bright star, our growth for the current year is estimated at 7.0 per cent, this is the highest among all major economies," said Finance Minister Sitharaman.

She said that the per capita income has increased to Rs1.97 lakh.