New Delhi: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said that the government has no plans to print currency notes to deal with the current economic crisis arising out of the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
In response to a question asked by a member of the Lok Sabha about any such scheme, Sitharaman said ‘no sir’. He told the Parliament that India’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product) is estimated to shrink by 7.3 percent during 2020-21. This contraction reflects the unique impact of the pandemic and the containment measures taken to control the pandemic.
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Sitharaman said, “The fundamentals of the economy remain strong as the gradual scaling up of the lockdown, as well as the subtle support of the Atmanirbhar Bharat Mission, has put the economy firmly on the path of recovery from the second half of FY 2020-21.” ” by news agency PTI.
He reiterated the economic and comprehensive package of Rs 29.87 lakh crore announced by the government under Atmanirbhar Bharat to counter the impact of the pandemic, revive economic growth and boost employment during 2020-21.
A month ago, the central government had announced about eight economic relief measures. Elaborating the economic relief measures, Sitharaman announced a Rs 1.1 lakh crore credit guarantee scheme for Covid-affected areas and Rs 50,000 crore for the health sector, aiming to target sectors that lack medical infrastructure. Other sectors will get Rs 60,000 lakh crore.
Sitharaman further announced an additional Rs 1.5 lakh crore for the emergency credit line guarantee scheme under the Atmanirbhar Bharat package, with another Rs 1.5 lakh crore being given credit.
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