Former Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram on Friday welcomed the Reserve Bank of India’s decision to infuse liquidity into the markets. But he termed “half-hearted” the three-month moratorium on EMI repayments, recommended by the RBI.
“I welcome the RBI’s decision to cut the repo rate and measures to provide more liquidity,” he wrote on Twitter, soon after RBI Governor Shakti Kanta Das announced the decisions of the Monetary Policy Committee.
Besides the steps to increase liquidity, including by cutting the cash reserve ratio, the RBI said banks could allow a three-month moratorium on EMI repayments of all term loans standing out on March 1.
Mr. Chidambaram called this decision “half- hearted” as the RBI left it to the discretion of the commercial banks to extend this benefit to their customers. “The demand is that all EMI due dates be automatically deferred. I had suggested that all due dates falling before 30 June be deferred to 30 June. Borrowers have been made to depend on the banks concerned, and will be disappointed,” he said.
