The Central government, which has already pumped in close to ₹5.75 lakh crore into the economy in two different instalments to provide monetary liquidity to the banks and kickstart the economic activities, is holding meetings with various stakeholders to formulate stimulus packages and even tax relief to the industries, said Bharatiya Janata Party national general secretary P. Muralidhar Rao on Thursday.
"We are not a rich country to splurge but the fact also is 80% of the population depends on subsidies. The government is thinking of innovative solutions to monetise and kickstart the economy," he said, declining to get into specifics. However, the BJP leader cautioned that there was going to be “lot of pain” ahead due to the disruption in economic activity in all the spheres.
Both the Central and State governments are working in a coordinated fashion to handle this unprecedented 'war' like situation where economic challenges are going to be immense, he said, talking to the media through Zoom app video conferencing. The entire country has been united in fighting the battle, raising above political ideologies, with only West Bengal being an odd exception, he said.
There is a likelihood of the current lockdown to be eased in select sectors gradually after May first week but since the COVID-19 spread is 'dynamic', it all depends whether there will be spurt in new cases or a decline during this period before a definite time-table can be arrived at for now, he said.
"I don't foresee an extended lockdown. Agriculture and allied activities have already been exempt. Disruption is going to be norm and since coronavirus cannot be wished away in the absence of a confirmed drug or a vaccine, there is bound to be a major change in the way we lead our lives with social distancing, personal hygiene and sanitation being top priorities. There is going to be a major change in how governments policies towards public health and preventive healthcare from primary healthcare centres to the secondary/tertiary hospitals,” he said.
With China under focus for the virus spread, it is also an opportunity for ‘frontline’ States like Telangana, Gujarat and others to provide ideal conditions for the likely shift of industries and investments. The entire world is in a lockdown with United States and Europe particularly in a bad shape, the general secretary noted and claimed that the country has been to contain the situation and fatalities, primarily also because the spread has not been that widespread due to varied reasons.
Political parties too are in for a big change in the way they function, interact and communicate with their own cadres and only with the people with extensive use of technology going to be the new normal, he added.
