Number of Industries Closed Due to COVID-19 Lockdown in the Country

RAJYA SABHA

CLOSURE OF INDUSTRIES DUE TO COVID

534. SHRI P. WILSON

Will the Minister of Commerce and Industry be pleased to state:

(a) the details of number of industries closed due to COVID-19 lockdown in the country, especially in Tamil Nadu;

(b) the  details  of  the  schemes  /  financial  assistance  provided  to  industries  during lockdown, especially in Tamil Nadu during COVID-19;

(c) whether Government has any plan to set up new industries in Tamil Nadu, if so, the details thereof;

(d) the details of the steps taken by Government to increase the employment rate in industrial sector, especially in Tamil Nadu;

(e) how many SEZs are there, especially in Tamil Nadu, district-wise; and

(f) whether Government has any plans to establish new SEZs in Tamil Nadu?

(SHRI SOM PARKASH)

(a) As per information received from Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), the opening and closing of companies are registered with MCA, however MCA does not capture the cause of closure in any of the forms. The filings pertaining to the FY 2020-21 will commence from September, 2021 onwards. The number of closed companies registered with MCA for the period of 1st April 2020 to 30th June 2021 is 17228 out of which the number of closed companies in Tamil Nadu is 1899. However, this includes data of companies closed before onset of COVID and also the cause of closure may not necessarily be closure of industrial activity.

(b) The Government has also recently announced structural reforms as part of the Aatmanirbhar Package. A statement on Atmanirbhar Bharat is at Annexure 1.

(c) & (d) Government has formulated several schemes for promoting setting up of industries. New industries when setup, lead to increase in employment opportunities. Brief description of important schemes of DPIIT are given in Annexure 2.

(e) & (f) As per information received from Department of Commerce, Special Economic Zones (SEZs) being set up under the SEZ Act, 2005 and SEZ Rules, 2006 are primarily private investment driven initiatives. No budgetary support is provided by the Central Government for setting up on SEZ. The proposals for setting up of SEZs are considered by the Board of Approval (BoA) on recommendations of the concerned State Government. At present, there are 379 notified SEZs out of which 58 Special Economic Zones (SEZs) have been notified in the State of Tamil Nadu as detailed in the list given in Annexure 3.

ANNEXURE -1

• Rs. 3 lakh crore Emergency Working Capital Facility for Businesses, including MSMEs
• Rs. 20,000 crore Subordinate Debt for Stressed MSMEs
• Rs. 50,000 crore equity infusion through MSME Fund of Funds
• New Definition of MSME and other Measures for MSME
• No Global tenders for Government tenders of upto Rs.200 crore.
• Extending the Employees Provident Fund Support for business and organised workers for another 3 months for salary months of June, July and August 2020
• EPF Contribution to be reduced for Employers and Employees for 3 months to 10% from 12% for all establishments covered by EPFO for next 3 months
• Rs. 30,000 crore Special Liquidity Scheme for NBFC/HFC/MFIs
• Rs. 45,000 crore Partial credit guarantee Scheme 2.0 for Liabilities of NBFCs/MFIs
• Rs. 90,000 crore Liquidity Injection for DISCOMs
• Relief to Contractors given by extension of up to six months for completion of contractual obligations, including in respect of EPC and concession agreements
• Relief  to  Real  Estate  Projects  the  registration  and  completion  date  for  all  registered projects will be extended up to six months.
• Tax relief to business as pending income tax refunds to charitable trusts and non-corporate businesses and professions to be issued immediately
• Reduction in Rates of ‘Tax Deduction at Source’ and ‘Tax Collected at Source” by 25% for the remaining period of FY 20-21 15. Due Dates for various tax related compliances extended

B. Announcements made on 14.05.2020

• Free food grains supply to Migrants for 2 months.
• Technology system to be used enabling Migrants to access PDS(Ration) from any Fair Price Shops in India by March,2021-One Nation one Ration Card
• Scheme for Affordable Rental Housing Complexes for Migrant Workers and Urban Poor to be launched
• 2% Interest Subvention for 12 months for Shishu MUDRA loanees- Relief of Rs. 1500 crore
• Rs. 5000 crore Credit facility for Street Vendors.
• Rs.70,000crore boost to housing sector and middle income group through extension of Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme for MIG under PMAY(Urban)
• Rs. 6,000 crore for Creating employment using CAMPA funds
• Rs. 30,000 crore Additional Emergency Working Capital for farmers through NABARD
• Rs. 2 lakh crore concessional credit boost to 2.5 crore farmers under Kisan Credit Card Scheme

 C. Announcements made on 15.05.2020

• Rs. 1 lakh crore Agri Infrastructure Fund for farm-gate infrastructure for farmers
• Rs. 10,000 crore scheme for formalisation of Micro Food Enterprises (MFE)
• Rs. 20,000 crore for Fishermen through Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY)
• National Animal Disease Control Programme
• Setting up of Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund – Rs. 15,000 crore 30. Promotion of Herbal Cultivation : outlay of Rs. 4,000 crore
• Beekeeping initiatives –Rs. 500 crore

• From ‘TOP’ to TOTAL- – Rs. 500 crore [Operation Greens Scheme TOP to TOTAL provides 50% subsidy on transport and storage of notified fruits and vegetables if prices of such fruits or vegetables are below the trigger price.
• Measures for Governance and Administrative Reforms for Agriculture Sector i. Amendments to Essential Commodities Act to enable better price realisation for farmers ii. Agriculture Marketing Reforms to provide marketing choices to farmers iii. Agriculture Produce Price and Quality Assurance

D. Announcements made on 16.05.2020

• Commercial Mining introduced in Coal Sector

• Diversified Opportunities in Coal Sector 36. Liberalised Regime in Coal Sector
• Enhancing Private Investments and Policy Reforms in Mineral Sector
• Enhancing Self Reliance in Defence Production
• Policy Reforms in Defence Production
• Efficient Airspace Management for Civil Aviation
• More World-Class Airports through PPP
• India to become a global hub for Aircraft Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) 43. Tariff Policy Reform in Power Sector; Privatization of Distribution in UTs
• Boosting private sector investment through revamped Viability Gap Funding Scheme in Social Sector
• Boosting private participation in space activities
• Reforms in Atomic Energy Sector

E. Announcements made on 17.05.2020

• Rs. 40,000 crore increase in allocation for MGNREGS to provide employment boost
• Increased investments in Public Health and other health reforms to prepare India for future pandemics
• Technology Driven Education with Equity post-COVID
• Further enhancement of Ease of Doing Business through IBC related measures
• Decriminalisation of Companies Act defaults
• Ease of Doing Business for Corporates 53. Public Sector Enterprise Policy for a New, Self-reliant India
• Increase borrowing limits of States from 3% to 5% for 2020-21 only & promoting State l evel reforms

F. Announcements made on 12th October 2020

• LTC Cash Voucher Scheme- cash payment to employees in lieu of one LTC during 2018- 21, (full payment on Leave encashment and tax-free payment of LTC fare)
• Special Festival Advance Scheme- interest-free advance of Rs. 10,000, in the form of a prepaid RuPay Card, to be spent by March 31, 2021.
• Capital Expenditure Boost for States- A special interest-free 50-year loan to states for ₹ 12,000 crore capital expenditure

• ₹ 200 crore each for 8 North East states
• ₹ 450 crore each Uttarakhand, Himachal
• ₹ 7,500 crore for remaining states, as per share of Finance Commission’s devolution

• Capital Expenditure Boost for the Centre-Additional budget of ₹ 25,000 crore (in addition to ₹ 4.13 lakh crore given in Budget 2020-‘21) provided for capital expenditure on roads, defence, water supply, urban development and domestically produced capital equipment.

G. Announcements made on 12th November 2020

• Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana- to incentivize job creation during COVID-19 recovery. If EPF Oregistered establishments take in new employees without EPFO numbers or those who lost jobs earlier, the Yojana will benefit these employees.
• Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme for MSMEs, businesses, MUDRA borrowers and individuals (loans for business purposes), extended till March 31, 2021. Credit guarantee support scheme launched for Healthcare sector and 26 sectors stressed due to COVID-19. Entities will get additional credit up to 20% of outstanding credit; repayment can be done in five years (1 year moratorium + 4 years repayment).
• Production Linked Incentive worth ₹ 1.46 Lakh Crore offered to 10 champion sectors.
• ₹ 18,000 Crore Additional outlay for PM Awaas Yojana – Urban
• Support for Construction & Infrastructure – Relaxation of Earnest Deposit Money & Performance Security on Government Tenders
• Income Tax relief for Developers & Home Buyers
• Platform  for  Infra  Debt  Financing  66.  Support  for  Agriculture:  ₹  65,000  Crore  for subsidized fertilizers
• Boost for Rural Employment: Additional outlay of ₹ 10,000 Crore is being provided for PM Garib Kalyan Rozgar Yojana. Funds can be used for MGNREGA or for Gram Sadak Yojana, this will help accelerate rural economy .
• Boost for Project Exports ₹ 3,000 Crore boost to be given for project exports through assistance given by India to developing countries under Indian Development and Economic Assistance Scheme (IDEAS Scheme). This will help EXIM Bank facilitate these Line of Credit development assistance activities and promote exports from India.
• Capital and Industrial Stimulus ₹ 10,200 Crore additional budget stimulus will be provided for capital and industrial expenditure on defence equipment, industrial infrastructure and green energy.
• R&D grant for COVID Vaccine; ₹ 900 Crore is being provided to Department of Biotechnology for research activities related to COVID-19 vaccine development. This does not include cost of vaccine or logistics for vaccine distribution (whatever is required for that will be provided).

ANNEXURE -2

ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (c) & (d) OF THE RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.534 FOR ANSWER ON 23.07.2021.

Promotion of industries is a continuous and ongoing effort of the Government. Government has taken a number of steps, in addition to the ongoing schemes, to boost the growth of industries. Some of the key measures are highlighted below…………………………………. Click here to read more.