Former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram on Friday said India’s economy will “limp as long as the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman believe in their own myth making” and asked the government to take note of Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) suggestion to provide additional fiscal stimulus.
In a series of tweets, Mr. Chidambaram also asked about the Finance’s response to the RBI’s research paper and said only Mr. Modi and Ms. Sitharaman believed in the ₹20 lakh crore package.
“Now, the RBI too has come out with the demand that the government provide more fiscal stimulus. The RBI has belatedly added its voice to the unanimous demand by over a dozen world-renowned economists. The government’s stimulus so far adds up to a pathetic 2% of GDP or even less. Only the PM and the FM believe that their package amounts to 20% of GDP!” Mr. Chidambaram said.
“The economy will limp and the poor will suffer as long as the PM and the FM believe in their own myth-making,” he added and asked, “What is the FM’s response to the RBI’s research paper? Silence as usual?”
The former Finance Minister has been critical of the government’s fiscal packages during the corona period and been pitching for direct cash transfer to poor families to help revive demand and consumption.
On Friday, he had tweeted, I have tweeted,"UPA lifted 270 million people out of poverty. The pandemic, the unplanned lockdowns and the Modi government have pushed many millions below the poverty line".
