New Delhi: India plans to announce a new round of stimulus totaling around $ 20 billion ( ₹Rs 1.5 million lakh) this week to help lift the economy out of its historic contraction, government officials said Wednesday.
The package would follow Wednesday’s previous announcement of production-linked incentives worth around $ 27 billion ( ₹Rs 2 million lakh) for five years for manufacturers in 10 sectors.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and other senior officials will finalize the plan on Thursday, said the sources, who asked not to be identified.
The sources did not provide details of the package, in addition to saying that it would be aimed at stressed sectors with a focus on job creation.
The latest stimulus package from the Indian government in May failed to soften the blow of the strict coronavirus lockdown, as it focused on providing liquidity and unsecured credit for small businesses but with little real spending.
That package also left out highly affected sectors such as tourism, hospitality and aviation.
The Indian economy, which the International Monetary Fund pointed to as a global bright spot just a few years ago, contracted a considerable 23.9% in the April-June quarter and is forecast to contract more than 10% in the fiscal year through March. of 2021.
Coronavirus cases continue to rise in major cities in India and the country has been adding more than 40,000 cases per day.
Nonetheless, active coronavirus cases have fallen below 500,000 for the first time in more than three months, although the government has eased almost all restrictions to slow the spread of the virus.
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