May 2020, South Asia

The third day of Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s announcements May 15, 2020, outlining what is supposed to be a Rs 20 lakh crore relief, was mostly a repackaging of her last Budget speech, a section of experts said.

Sitharaman has spelt out deals for specific groups every day since Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his May 12 address, announced the package to help the economy tide over the effects of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

The third tranche, mostly for the primary sector of the economy, included some major policy shifts that may have far-reaching consequences.

“As an immediate step, we will provide Rs 1 lakh crore to strengthen farm-gate infrastructure such as cold chains, storage centres and post-harvest management,” Sitharaman said.

Private entrepreneurs and start-ups looking to procure from farmers and “reaching out with value addition to the global market” will benefit, she added.