Masoodi calls on Union Finance Minister

New Delhi: The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference Member of Parliament from Anantnag Hassnain Masoodi on Thursday called on Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman and demanded moratorium on loan repayment for MSME and small businesses.

According to a statement issued here, “Masoodi brought to the notice of the Union Finance Minister the predicaments suffered by the MSME and small traders in Jammu and Kashmir and drew her attention towards the disruptions caused by the successive Clampdowns and Covid-19 induced lock downs.”

   

Masoodi held that most of the start-ups and MSMEs have landed up in uncertainty due to the problem in the demand side. “The much needed deferment in repaying of loans will provide oxygen mask for the survival of distressed MSMEs, and other small scale traders and businesses. The repaying of loans, I implored upon the concerned minister should be postponed until the demand side improves. I told her how MSMEs and other small businesses have taken extra hit due to the interruption in the economy activity since 2019,” he said.

In his interaction with the concerned minister, he stated that nearly 3000 MSMEs in JK are staring at closure. “I informed her the situation got worse after second wave of the pandemic and is bound to get compounded in wake of the imminent third wave,” he added.

He also brought to the ‘notice of the concerned minister the unavailability of banking facilities in the remote areas of Jammu and Kashmir.’

Masoodi also brought to union minister’s notice the trepidation suffered by the borrowers due to the practice followed by JK Bank, which requires for having government employees as guarantors at the time of granting loans. “The practice followed by JK bank, I told the concerned minister, has made the lives of guarantors miserable. In some cases these tactics have, I told her, pushed both borrowers and guarantors to commit suicide. I impressed upon her that the practice should be disbanded and the withheld salaries of such guarantors released forthwith,” he said.

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