Centre should bear 70 pc wage bill of MSME sector: Congress

The Congress on Monday demanded that the Central government should bear 70 per cent of wage bill of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) for three months and it should come out with a law that there will be no retrenchment in any sector or company for the next six months.

In a statement, Congress spokesperson Gourav Vallabh said that bearing 70 per cent of the wage bill of the MSME sector for three months will entail an expenditure of about Rs 1 lakh crore.

"The Central government should bear 70 per cent of salary and wage bill of MSME for three months from March to May 2020," he said.

The party made the demand amid a 21-day lockdown in the country to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Vallabh said there are about 4.25 crore MSMEs in India as of 2019.

"The contribution of MSME sector to GDP is 29 per cent, which is about Rs 61 lakh crore. Assuming the wage bill of MSME to be 10 per cent of turnover, we can consider Rs 6.1 lakh crore as the wage bill. For one month, it would be around Rs 50,000 crore and for three months around Rs 1.50 lakh crore. Seventy per cent of the same works out to approximately Rs 1 lakh crore and assuming that about 45 crore are employed (in the sector), it works out to only Rs.2,200 per person employed," he said.

Vallabh said the truck drivers were the backbone of the economy and due to the unprecedented disruption they are likely to go hungry. He said a truck driver normally supports five members of his family.

"The government has to support these people by providing immediate driver advance to transporters by the DBT (direct benefit transfer) to the extent of three months of their wages," he said.

The Congress leader said there were about 30 lakh truck drivers in the country and the total burden to the exchequer will be around Rs 25,000 crore. The step, he said, will also ensure a smooth supply chain.

"The Central government should come out with a law -- no retrenchment in any sector or company whatsoever for next six months (March to August, 2020)," he said.