In a Diwali bonanza for small and medium businesses, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced a 59-minute loan facility for up to Rs 1 crore for the sector.

Modi, who launched the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) support programme, said his government had come up with 12 policies to support the sector. The Prime Minister said Goods and Services Tax (GST)-registered MSMEs would get 2 per cent rebate on incremental loan of up to Rs 1 crore.

Modi called it a “Diwali gift” and said the move will help generate employment in the sector.

The outreach programme will run for 100 days covering 100 districts through the country.

Lauding the country’s jump on the Ease of Doing Business Rankings to the 77th place, Modi said India had done what people couldn't imagine. He added that a “rank within top 50 is not far away”.

The announcement comes as a counter to overtures to small businesses already made by the opposition Congress party. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said in August he would seek to shift the focus of the country's economic policy towards supporting small and medium-sized firms if the opposition won power in next year's election.