Handloom Weavers Request GST Removal because of Lack of Government Support:

Handloom Weavers Request GST Removal because of Lack of Government Support A number of handloom workers gathered on Thursday at the state-level handloom conference at Vijayawada's Kandukuri Kalyana Mandapam to demand the immediate repeal of the Goods and Service Tax (GST) on handloom products. Rao asserts that the government ought to be aware that the Nethanna Hastham scheme's Rs.24,000 in financial assistance would not be sufficient to maintain handloom workers. Macherla Mohan Rao, the state convenor for Rashtra Chenetha Jana Samakhya (RCJS), said during the conference that the struggles of millions of handloom workers are a result of governments' lack of support. He said that the state government purposefully delayed the issuance of ID cards to reduce the number of Nethanna Hastham beneficiaries, which made handloom artisans ineligible for Mudra loans. One of the MSMEs-related efforts started as a part of the AtmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan is meant to be carried out via the "Mudra" programme. Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) defines shishu loans as loans for income-generating activities up to Rs. 50,000. The Union Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, approved a scheme for 2% interest subvention on all Shishu loan accounts for a 12-month term today in accordance with the PMMY, according to report. They pleaded with the state and federal governments to intervene immediately and support the industry, which is in need, and issued a warning that there might be suicides in the handloom sector if they did not.