New Delhi: Subhash Chandra Garg, Former Secretary of State for Economic Affairs, said that the total shutdown following the Corona pestilence has wreaked havoc on the country. Lockdown has affected the borrowers and businesses and the central and state governments.
The complete shutdown has wreaked havoc on the transport, travel, leisure, and sports sectors. GARG warned that the level of NPA (Non-Performing Asset) in these areas would increase sharply. Even before the corona scare, Rs 15 lakh crore had been trapped in passive trade. This amounts to 15 percent of the loans granted to businesses. Garg’s estimate is that in the wake of the lockdown, idle business loans could cross Rs 30 lakh.
Many profit-making businesses are likely to collapse under economic lock-down. These ventures lose a lot of capital. Garg believes that many ventures will require more capital. After the lockdown, the country’s enterprises will need at least a million rupees to get back on track. According to Garg, India’s total debt is around Rs 300 trillion ($ 4 trillion). This includes the liabilities of Central and State Governments and Business Enterprises.
The debt of the central and state governments are about Rs 140 lakh crore. The total liabilities of the enterprises in the country will touch Rs 100 trillion. The country has a lot of problems with regard to funding deficits and creditworthiness of business enterprises to reduce government deficits. At present, the financial crisis is waiting for the central government. At this point, the government may need to take additional loans. On the other hand, the current credit rating of enterprises is likely to decline as the NPAs of banks and non-bank institutions increase.
