“Let me make it very clear at the outset: the grand announcement yesterday was no stimulus package to push economic growth, it was another sly attempt to dazzle the people with exaggerated numbers and lead them to believe that the government is hands-on and responsive to the needs of the people and the economy.” said former finance minister P Chidambaram on tuesday in a virtual press meet. He was talking about Rs 73,000 crore package announced by the government to stimulate consumer demand and investment in the economy that has been battered by the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. Slamming center he also said Stating the earlier Rs 20 lakh package announced by the government to be a massive failure, he said the numbers claimed this time are a hoax too. “The stimulus is not of a value of Rs 73,000 crore. Nor is it of the value of Rs 1,00,000 crore, another number that has been thrown at us. The fiscal impact of these announcements is estimated by analysts to be a mere 0.1 per cent of GDP (gross domestic product), he added. “It was another sly attempt to dazzle the people with exaggerated numbers and lead them to believe that the government is hands-on and responsive to the needs of the people and the economy” also said Congress leader P Chidambaram on the government’s latest stimulus package.
