NEW DELHI: The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has urged the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for financial support policies for small traders in the impending Budget.
The CAIT suggested that besides advising the RBI to ensure smooth and easy access of finance to the trading community, the Finance Minister should announce a policy in the budget to lay special stress on NBFCS & Micro Finance Institutions for lending to small businesses and the Banks and financial institutions should strengthen NBFCs and MFIs by providing requisite finance at a lower rate of interest so that both these lending institutions should provide finance to small businesses at a lower interest rate.
"Such a policy will greatly supplement the financial needs of small businesses and will help the retail trade in exponentially utilising its capacities and capabilities," said CAIT Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal. He also said that the trading community has been grossly neglected by the successive governments' post-Independence and no support policies were ever made for the retail trade of India.
In a communication sent to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday, CAIT said as follows: "Absence of a policy and a separate Ministry for Internal Trade is an ample testimony of the apathy towards the trading community." It assumes much significance as it has been sent at a time when Union Budget is under preparation.
"I Belong To Middle Class": Nirmala Sitharaman says ahead of Budget 2023
'Middle class, income tax, freebies...', Sitharaman answers many questions on budget
