India on Thursday announced measures to assist with food, shelter and livelihood for the migrant workers, street vendors and small farmers hit hardest by the nationwide lockdown to control the coronavirus pandemic.
The government will provide food assistance for 80 million migrant workers for the next two months at a cost of 35 billion rupees (463 million dollars), Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told reporters.
Millions of workers have fled Indian cities, often on foot, after losing their jobs to the lockdown.
Thursday’s measures are part of a second tranche of the government’s 266-billion-dollar package to revive an economy reeling from the pandemic fallout.
Alongside measures to help the agricultural sector, a concessional credit line of 264 million dollars will be extended to small farmers. Street vendors will also be eligible for new subsidized bank loans.
The government has spent a further 100 billion rupees since April on a scheme offering work to 23 million unemployed people in rural areas.
The government will also extend subsidy programmes for affordable housing to cover rental housing for migrant workers and the urban poor, Sitharaman added.
Read also: ‘This virus may never go away,’ WHO says
The announcement came a day after the Finance Ministry offered emergency collateral-free loans to small and medium-sized businesses.
The monetary and fiscal package is equivalent to 10 per cent of India’s gross domestic product.
Sitharaman said the government had not yet estimated the extent of economic damage caused by the pandemic. (dpa)
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.