Govt raises credit line for hospitality, industry says expected more

The hospitality sector on Tuesday received a special mention in a Union Budget speech for the first time as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the expansion of the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) — which provides additional credit to over 1.3 crore Micro, Medium, and Small Enterprises (MSMEs) — by Rs 50,000 crore to a total cover of Rs 5 lakh crore, and extended it till March 2023.

The additional amount will be exclusively earmarked for hospitality and related segments to help them get back to pre-pandemic levels, Sitharaman said.

The move received mixed reactions. Nakul Anand, chairperson of FAITH, which is the policy federation of national associations representing the tourism, travel and hospitality industry, said the government could have extended more direct support. Indian Association of Tour Operators’ president Rajiv Mehra also expressed despair over the government’s announcements.