Bengaluru: After RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das announced a slew of measures to help the common man tide over the crisis caused by coronavirus that included a 3-month moratorium on EMIs to be paid across loans and slashing of repo rates, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the move, saying it was safeguard our economy. 

He said on his twitter account: “Today @RBI has taken giant steps to safeguard our economy from the impact of the Coronavirus. The announcements will improve liquidity, reduce cost of funds, help middle class and businesses.” 

 

3 month EMI moratorium on Term loans:

All commercial banks (including regional rural banks, small finance banks and local area banks), co-operative banks, all-India Financial Institutions, and NBFCs (including housing finance companies and micro-finance institutions) (“lending institutions”) are being permitted to allow a moratorium of three months on payment of instalments in respect of all term loans outstanding as on March 1, 2020. Accordingly, the repayment schedule and all subsequent due dates, as also the tenor for such loans, maybe shifted across the board by three months, the RBI's statement says.

While the nation heaves a collective sigh over deferment of EMIs to be paid, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram has welcomed the slash in repo rates, but not on the EMI aspect.

He said, “I welcome the RBI’s decision to cut the repo rate and measures to provide more liquidity. However, the RBI’s direction on deferment of EMI dates is ambiguous and half-hearted. The demand is that all EMI due dates must be automatically deferred.”

Meanwhile, the RBI governor also asked people not to panic over the Yes Bank crisis and urged them not to resort to panic withdrawals.

He said, "Do not resort to the panic withdrawal of deposits from private banks, your money is safe.”

The RBI governor has emphasised that the Indian banking system was safe and sound and that there was nothing to worry about it.