Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, during a presser today, said she will make 12 announcements as part of the government's Atma Nirbhar Bharat 3.0 stimulus package to revive the economy hit hard by coronavirus. These are the next steps in the series of stimulus measures announced by the government amid the coronavirus pandemic putting a halt on India's growth momentum.
Under the Atmanirbhar Bharat 3.0, the FM announced Atmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana. The Centre will provide subsidy for two years in respect of newly eligible employees engaged on or after October 1, 2020 under the scheme.
She said the Aatmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana is being launched to incentivise creation of new employment opportunities during COVID-19 recovery. "Every EPFO registered organisations - if they take in new employees or those who had lost jobs between March 1 and Sept 30 - these employees will get benefits," she said.
For the establishments employing up to 1,000 employees, the Centre will provide employee's contributions (12per percent of the wages) and employer's contributions (12 percent of wages), totalling 24 per cent of the wages.
For those employing more than 1,000 employees, the government will provide EPF contribution worth 12 per cent of the EPF wages. The FM said the subsidy support will get credited upfront in Aadhaar seeded EPF account of the eligible new employee.
The establishments registering with EPFO after the commencement of scheme will also get the subsidy for all new employees. The scheme will be operation till June 30, she added.
She also said the RBI predicts a strong likelihood of the Indian economy returning to positive growth in Q3 of the fiscal year, ahead by a quarter of the earlier forecast. Besides, the existing Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme has also been extended till 31st March 2021.