Atmanirbhar Bharat 3.0

Context: Government has announced Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan 3.0, a fiscal stimulus package to boost demand and help the economy to recover from the slowdown. 

Relevance:
Prelims: About Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan
Mains: GS III: Features and significance of fiscal stimulus package 

• Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan (Self-reliant India Mission) is a campaign launched by the Central Government of India which included Rs 20 lakh crore economic stimulus package and a number of reform proposals.
• As part of the relief measures in the aftermath of COVID-19, the Government announced a special economic package and gave a clarion call for “Atmanirbhar Bharat” or “Self-reliant India”.
• This package totals Rs 20 lakh crore, including the government’s recent announcements on supporting key sectors and measures by the Reserve Bank of India, which is equivalent to almost 10% of India’s GDP.
• The meaning of the term ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ is self-reliant India.
• The five pillars of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ are stated as:
  1. Economy
  2. Infrastructure
  3. Technology-driven systems
  4. Vibrant demography, and
  5. Demand.
• The government announced it in different tranches.

The Finance Minister announced 12 measures under Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan 3.0.It includes:

1. Atmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana:
   • Central Govt. to provide subsidy for two years in respect of new eligible employees engaged on or after 01.10.2020 at the following scale
     • Establishments employing up to 1000 employees Employee's contributions (12% of Wages) & Employer's contributions (12% of wages) totalling 24% of wages
     • Establishments employing more than 1000 employees Only Employee's EPF contributions (12% of EPF wages)
   • The subsidy support to get credited upfront in Aadhaar seeded EPFO Account (UAN) of eligible new employee 
2. Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) 2.0:
   • Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) 2.0 is being launched for the Healthcare sector and 26 stressed sectors (as identified by the Kamath Committee) with credit outstanding of above Rs. 50 crore and up to Rs. 500 crore as on 29th February 2020 stressed due to Covid-19, among other criteria.
   • Entities will get additional credit up to 20% of outstanding credit with a tenor of five years, including a 1-year moratorium on principal repayment.
   • This scheme will be available till 31st March 2021.
3. Atmanirbhar Manufacturing Production-Linked Incentives for 10 champion sectors:
   • Rs 1.46 lakh crore boost for Aatmanirbhar ManufacturingProduction-linked incentives for 10 Champion Sectors 
   • Government of India has already approved PLI schemes for 3 sectors at a cost of Rs 51,355 crore as below: 
     • Mobile Manufacturing and specified electronics components at a cost of Rs 40,995 crore; 
     • Critical Key Starting Materials (KSM), Drug intermediates and Active Pharmaceuticals Ingredients (API) at a cost of Rs 6,940 crore 
     • Manufacturing of Medical Devices at a cost of Rs Rs. 3,420 crore. 
   • 10 more Champion Sectors will now be covered under the Production Linked Incentives Scheme to boost the competitiveness of domestic manufacturing. This is expected to give a significant boost to Economic Growth and domestic employment 
4. Additional Outlay for PM Awas Yojana – Urban:
   • Rs 18,000 crores additional outlay for PM Awaas Yojana (PMAY) -Urban 
   • A number of measures have been taken in the past several months for revival of the Housing and Real Estate Sector.
   • These measures have contributed to a fair recovery in this sector. (SWAMIH– 135 projects approved with an outlay of Rs.13,200 crore. This will result in the completion of 87,000 incomplete houses/Flats. 
   • However, there is a need for further measures to enable the sector to generate more employment 
   • Rs 18,000 crore will be provided over the Budget Estimates for 2020-21 for Prime Minister Awaas Yojana – Urban (PMAY-U) through additional allocation and Extra Budgetary Resources. 
   • This is over and above the Rs 8,000 crore already allotted this year. This will help 12 lakhs houses to be grounded and 18 lakh to be completed Expected additional jobs to 78 lakh people, Steel – 25 LMT, Cement -131 LMT 
5. Demand booster for Residential Real Estate, Income Tax relief for Developers & Home Buyers:
   • Economic slowdown has led to a decline in prices of residential units
   • Presently Section 43CA of IT Act restricts differential between circle rate & agreement value @ 10% – Prices may actually be lower than this.
   • Decided to increase the differential from 10% to 20% (under section 43CA) for the period from the date of the announcement to 30th June 2021 for only primary sale of residential units of value up to Rs 2 crores.
   • Consequential Relief up to 20% shall also be allowed to buyers of these units under section 56(2)(x) of IT Act for the said period.
   • The necessary amendment to IT Act would be proposed in due course.
   • This measure will reduce hardships faced by both home-buyers and developers and help in clearing the unsold inventory. 
6. Support for construction and Infrastructure:
   • Performance security on contracts to be reduced to 3% instead of 5 to 10% 
   • Will be extended to ongoing contracts which are free of disputes
   • Will also be extended to Public Sector Enterprises.
   • States will be encouraged to adopt the same
   • Earnest Deposit Money (EMD) will not be required for tenders and will be replaced by Bid Security Declaration
   • Relaxations will be given till 31.12.2021 under General Financial Rules
   • Will give relief to contractors by reducing locking up of capital and cost of BG 
7. Infrastructure Debt Financing:
   • The government will make Rs. 6,000 Crore equity investment in the debt platform of the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF), which will help NIIF provide a debt of Rs. 1.1 Lakh Crore for infrastructure projects by 2025.
8. Support for Agriculture:
   • There is an estimated increase in fertilizer usage of 17.8% over the actual usage in 2019-20 of 571 lakh metric tonnes. The increase is on account of favorable monsoons and the resultant increase in the sown area. 
   • Fertiliser consumption, which was 499 lakh MT in 2016-17, is expected to increase to 673 lakh MT in 2020-21. 
   • Increased supply of fertilizers at subsidized rates will help 140 million farmers. 
   • Rs 65,000 crore being provided to ensure adequate availability of fertilizers to farmers to enable timely availability in the upcoming crop season. 
9. Boost for rural employment:
   • An additional outlay of Rs. 10,000 Crore is being provided for PM Garib Kalyan Rozgar Yojana to provide rural employment. This will help accelerate the rural economy.
10. Boost for Project Exports:
    • Rs. 3,000 Crore boost is being provided to EXIM Bank for promoting project exports under Indian Development and Economic Assistance Scheme (IDEAS Scheme).
    • Under the IDEAS Scheme, most recipient countries get Indian firms executing projects such as railway lines, transmission lines, and so on.
11. Capital and Industrial Stimulus:
    • Rs. 10,200 Crore additional budget stimulus is being provided for capital and industrial expenditure on domestic defense equipment, industrial infrastructure, and green energy.
12. Research and Development grant for Covid-19 vaccine: 
    • Rs 900 crore will be given to the Department of Biotechnology to research and develop the vaccine of COVID-19.

• The government by starting this campaign has led a real Swadeshi movement and revolutionize Indian products.
• However, in the quest to attain a self-reliant India, it is necessary for the government to decentralize its policies, take decisions for the rural crowd and laborers, keep the poor and underprivileged at priority, make environmental-friendly policies that are rooted to make India a self-sufficient nation globally.
• In history, when India believed within Gandhi’s model of self-reliance, wonders happened.
• On the contrary today, an epidemic has violated our independence, but we all shall ‘be vocal for local’ and adapt to a new lifestyle of being mutually interdependent and become empowered.