A.M. Ariff, MP, has urged the Centre to announce a comprehensive financial package to deal with the fallout of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic .
In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mr. Ariff urged him to consider direct cash transfer to people.
“The Union government should take immediate steps to announce a comprehensive financial package covering the entire population. It should consider direct cash transfers, provision of other essential food items other than rice or wheat, interest-free moratorium on repayment of existing loans for at least six months,” the Alappuzha MP said.
Citing various reports from across the country, Mr. Ariff noted that people were finding it hard to manage their daily life.
“Though the Union government has announced free food grains for beneficiaries covered under the National Food Security Act, it would not make any change unless the purchasing capacity of households is enhanced to get access to other essential food and non-food items including drugs by way of direct cash transfer,” he said.
Mr. Ariff also criticised the Centre over its move to divest stake in IDBI Bank.
“I really wonder when thousands of citizens are fighting for their life for want of oxygen in hospitals across the country, how the government could set the public sector disinvestment as a priority. It brought to my mind the story of ‘Nero fiddled while Rome burned’.
