The central government is indulging in headline management and has no plans to revive the economy that is in the grip of a historic recession, the Congress said on Thursday.
Addressing a virtual news conference, senior Congress leaders P Chidambaram and Jairam Ramesh said the third stimulus package announced by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday was yet another move to deflect the attention of the people from the bad state of the economy.
“The economy continues to be in dire straits and the government does not have a plan to revive the economy. On the other hand, it is busy deflecting the attention of the people from the economy and managing the headlines about the economy,” Chidambaram, the former finance minister in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, said.
“I don’t think this government has a considered plan to revive the economy and therefore 2020-21 will be a wasted year and we will end up with the size of the economy lower than the previous year,” he added.
Ramesh said the government was only indulging in headlines management to bury the fact that the Indian economy in recession. “At least this year, its [stimulus] effect will not be seen,” he said.
However, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president JP Nadda rejected the Opposition’s charge. “With today’s announcements total stimulus have gone up to Rs 29.87 lakh crore, which is 15% of the GDP. Hon PM @narendramodi ji govt’s timely decisions & effective last mile delivery is leaving no stone unturned to make India Self-reliant,” he tweeted.
