Government likely to announce measures to help small and medium-sized businesses on November 2 - finance ministry

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India is likely to announce new steps to support small and medium-sized businesses, such as increased access to credit and financial markets, at an industry event on Nov. 2, the finance ministry said in a tweet.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch a programme to support the businesses in New Delhi on Friday, the finance ministry said.

Modi's government is pushing the central bank to relax lending norms for small businesses and pump more liquidity into the market to bolster economic growth before key state elections due in the next few weeks and a general election that has to be held by May.

Tensions between the Reserve Bank of India and the government have intensified in the past week as the central bank pushes back against government pressure to relax its policies and reduce its powers.

(Reporting by Neha Dasgupta and Nidhi Verma; Edited by Martin Howell)