RBI immediate COVID-19 loans for healthcare |
The Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das on 5th May announced immediate liquidity of 6.76 billion US Dollars for a tenure of three years for banks to be able to extend Covid-19 loans for all healthcare entities. This move is aimed at easing access to emergency healthcare services. Das said, "To boost the provision of immediate liquidity for ramping up immediate covid-related infrastructure and services in the country, an on-tap liquidity window of 6.76 billion dollars at the repo rate is being opened for March 31, 2022,". He said, under this scheme, banks can provide fresh lending support to a wide-ranging of entities including vaccine manufacturers, importers and suppliers of vaccines and priority medical devices, hospitals and dispensaries, pathology labs, manufacturers and suppliers of oxygen and ventilators, and also patients for treatment. These loans will continue to be classified under the `priority sector` till repayment or maturity, whichever is earlier. Banks may deliver these loans to borrowers directly or through intermediaries. Banks are expected to create a Covid loan book under this scheme. Such banks will be eligible to park their surplus liquidity up to the size of the Covid loan book under the reverse repo window at a rate 25 basis points lower than the repo rate. For small business units, including unorganised sector units, the RBI announced a special, three-year, long-term repo operations of 1.35 billion dollars. This facility will be available till October 31, 2021.
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