Highlights: Food, housing, jobs for poor in FM's new measures for lockdown

Migrant workers, small farmers and street vendors get attention in Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's new announcements.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday announced a second set of measures that are part of a Rs 20 trillion fiscal and monetary package announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to support India’s economy, which has been battered by a 51-day lockdown to curb the coronavirus outbreak.

"Today's initiatives focus on migrant workers, street vendors, small traders, the self-employed & small farmers," said Sitharaman at a press conference in Delhi. She listed nine steps for these sections of the society.

Here are highlights from her press conference:

1. Free food grain for migrant workers

• Free food grain supply to all migrant workers, even non-card holders, for the next two months: 5 kg wheat/rice per individual and  kg chana per family every month.
• "One nation, one ration card " will be implemented. In 23 states, 67 million beneficiaries (83% of all PDS beneficiaries) already covered. 100% coverage by March 2021
• Rs 3,500 crore to be spent on this over the next 2 months
• State governments to be implementing agency for this. 80 million migrant workers to benefit

2. For farmers

• Interest subvention on small loans for farmers at low rates extended to May 31, 2020
• Rs 30,000-cr working capital facility, in addition to the Rs 90,000 crore already provided by NABARD
• States to be given this fund via SSBs, RRBs
• Funds to be released immediately for post-rabi harvest work and kharif preparation of small and marginal farmers    

3. Credit for farmers

• Rs 2 trillion worth of concessional credit to be extended to 25 million farmers
• To be provided through Kisan credit cards
• Animal husbandry and fisheries to be eligible for this scheme

4. Housing for migrant workers/urban poor

• Special scheme for rental housing under Pradhan Mantri Aawas Yojana
• Manufacturing units will be incentivised to build affordable rental housing complexes
• Also converting government-funded houses into rental housing complexes
• Steps under Mudra Shishu loans (Rs 50,000 or less)
• Interest subvention support of 2% for 12 months at the cost of Rs 1,500 crore
• Rs 1,62,000 crore given out under this type of loan so far. 30 million people to benefit
• Credit-linked affordable housing subsidy scheme for the middle income group (with Rs 6 lakh to Rs 18 lakh annual income) extended to March 31, 2021

5. For street vendors

• Special credit facility scheme at the cost of Rs 5,000 crore
• Easy access to credit to be available for all street vendors (about 5 million in total)
• Each vendor can take up to Rs 10,000 as loan

6. Steps for employment generation

• Rs 6,000-crore CAMPA funds to be used for afforestation and similar projects
• Proposals have come from states
• Move to generate employment for tribal and rural people