Hyderabad: Tata Economic Consultancy Services (TECS), has submitted a final report to Agricultural and Processed Food Export Development Authority (APEDA) in a meeting held in New Delhi last week. The presentation was attended by representatives of various banks, FIs, exporters who accepted the recommended package. As per the communication received by the South India floriculture Association (SIFA) from APEDA, "The measures suggested by the report fall within the banking framework and no fresh infusion of funds are required by the lenders, the banks/FIs may be directed to initiate immediate implementation of the package on a case-to-case basis".

The salient points recommended by TECS are: Rebabilitation within RBI or banking framework; policy initiatives for supporting the industry, most of which has been already addressed by APEDA; Availability of Nabard refinance to the banks/FIs for rehabilitation.

The key initiatives prepared by the study are:

1. The loan to be repaid over a period of 10 years with a moratorium of three years.
2. The penal interest should be waived.
3. The interest rate should be at a rate of 11%.
4. The accrued interest should be converted into free-funded component on a repayment period of 10 years with a moratorium of four years
5. Provision of contingency finance upto 15 per cent for annual replanatation of seeds and polysheet replacement.
6. Formation of a management performance audit committee with a representation of growers.
7. NHB should convert Rs.25 lakhs out of its soft loan into a grant, as part of its scheme.
8. The revival package should be extended to units which has completed one year as on 199-2000 on a case-to-case basis.

The rehabilitation package will lead to higher recovery of the outstanding loans, as compared to a one-time settlement of debt recovery mechanism and does not require any policy change, said APEDA sources.