Diwali gift: FM Nirmala Sitharaman likely to announce stimulus package today

By Administrator_India

Capital Sands

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is likely to announce a mega pre-diwali stimulus package on November 12 afternoon. These could include measures aimed at sectors worst hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as listing out of infrastructure projects which will be expedited with the aim of job creation.

FM Sitharaman will hold a press conference at 12.30 PM today where she is likely to make the announcement.

Moneycontrol reported on November 11 that the stimulus package would focus on employment generation and incentives for stressed sectors. The stimulus package might be lower than the one announced in May, which was Rs 20 lakh crore.

Additionally, the Centre is aware of the fact that sectors like hospitality, tourism and aviation have been the worst hit due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Centre is also of the belief that traditional measures like direct tax or goods and service tax relief for these sectors may not be enough.

Over the past month or so, there have been multiple discussions within the government and with industry bodies and stakeholders leading upto this week.

On November 11, the Union Cabinet had approved the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for 10 sectors. These are pharmaceuticals, automobiles and auto components, telecom and networking products, advanced chemistry cell batteries, textile, food products, solar modules, white goods, and specialty steel.