'GST rationalization will help domestic trade'

By Sudarshan Chari

For this year’s budget, boosting consumption, enhancing the ease of doing business and increasing credit flow to the SME ecosystem should be some of the top priorities. Measures such as rationalization of GST will provide an impetus to domestic trade and fuel the growth of the SME sector.

We believe that democratizing access to timely and adequate credit will continue to be a key focus area. Initiatives such as the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) and more recently, the interest subvention for all GST registered MSMEs, have been encouraging steps in this direction. A further extension in the subversion scheme and adopting a broad-based approach for the loan disbursement criteria under CGTMSE will bridge gaps in the current SME financing scenario and bring more companies into the fold of the formal economy.

(The writer is the Head – Business Banking, DBS Bank India)