Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday addressed the media and shared the details of the Rs 20 lakh crore economic stimulus package that was announced by PM Modi on Tuesday to battle the coronavirus crisis.
Sitharaman started her address stating that PM Modi on Tuesday laid out a comprehensive vision after a “wide and deep consultation with several sections of our society”.
“These discussions were held at various levels,” she said.
The finance minister reiterated the importance of “self-reliant India” (Atmanirbhar Bharat). She said the announcement of the Rs 20 lakh crore economic package for ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ is to spur growth in the country.
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“The word ‘Atmanirbhar’ India is the one which you will hear me say quite often. I know coming from South India, a lot of people wondered what it meant, so for their benefit I will just say what it means,” Sitharaman said.
{{/usCountry}}“The word ‘Atmanirbhar’ India is the one which you will hear me say quite often. I know coming from South India, a lot of people wondered what it meant, so for their benefit I will just say what it means,” Sitharaman said.
{{/usCountry}}She went on to translate the term ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ in four South Indian languages - Tamil, Kannada, Telugu and Malayalam.
Sitharaman said that the five pillars of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ are economy, infrastructure, system, demography and demand.
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She said, over the next few days her team will come before the media to put forth PM’s vision and share more details on the economic package.
On Tuesday, in a series of tweets, the finance minister said that the stimulus package “shall not be just a financial package, but a reform stimulus, a mindset overhaul, and a thrust in governance.”
The prime minister described it as “a special economic package that will serve as an important link to the ‘Self-reliant India Campaign (Aatma nirbhar Bharat)’”. The relief package amounts to roughly 10% of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) she had tweeted.