Congress President Smt. Sonia Gandhi writes to PM Modi on the grave economic crisis facing the nation. She reiterat… https://t.co/0b9lBI9SnS — Congress (@INCIndia) 1587814851000

NEW DELHI: Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighting the economic concerns of MSMEs in the country that need "immediate" intervention of the government in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.Saying the MSMEs contribute close to one-third of the country's GDP and account for 50% of the exports, Sonia Gandhi, in her letter to Modi, said that more than 6.3 crore MSMEs stand on the verge of economic ruin.Raising the issue of micro MSME ), the Congress president suggested five ideas to avoid a crisis down the road:* First, announce a Rs 1 lakh crore 'MSME Wage protection' package.* Second, establish and deploy a credit gaurantee fund of Rs 1 lakh crore, to provide immediate liquidity to the sector.* Third, actions taken by the RBI must get reflected in actions by commercial banks to ensure adequate, easy and timely credit supply to MSMEs.* Fourth, these measures need to be supported by an expansion and extension of the RBI's moratorium on payment of loans for MSME beyond the stipulated period of 3 months.* Fifth, high collateral security is leading to denial fo credit. Same is the case with limits of 'margin money' being extremely high. These factors combine to ensure a lack of access to available credit for MSMEs and must be addressed."If ignored, this issue has the potential of having a devastating and expansive ripple effect on our economy ," she said in the letter.The Congress president said it is time that the government takes measures to ensure the revival of the MSMEs which are the backbone of the economy.She also reiterated the continued constructive support of her party to the government in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.