The trade and industry has welcomed the announcement made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and RBI Governor on Friday to combat the economic stress that is setting in across sectors.

“We appreciate the government for extending the deadline for compliance requirements under the Income Tax Act, GST, Wealth Tax Act, Prohibition of Benami Property Transaction Act, Black Money Act, Commodity Transaction Act. The extension of timelines by three months up to June is a major relief for the industrial sector and public at large,” said V Venugopal, President, Cochin Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The cut in repo rate, reverse repo rate and Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) will provide the much-needed impetus to the economy.

The RBI’s decision to permit all commercial banks, cooperative banks, all India financial institutions and NBFC’s to allow moratorium of three months on repayment of EMIs will play a crucial role in supporting the industry and the public who are struggling to make both ends meet, the chamber said. However, leaving the decision to the banks might go against the purpose of the relief measure if some banks choose to be arbitrary in extending the relief, the trade body added.

The chamber also appreciates the timely intervention and the various initiatives of the Kerala government in containing the impact of the virus spread in the State. George Alexander Muthoot, MD, Muthoot Finance said “the 75 bps cut in repo rate to reduce the cost of borrowing and 100 bps cut in CRR to boost the liquidity in the system is a welcome move. Also, the long-term repo operations (LTRO) issuances, where the liquidity generated by banks is to be invested 50 per cent in primary and remaining 50 per cent in the secondary market, is quite supportive of the NBFC sector. The overall policy is a relief to the general market in this turbulent time.”