indica News Bureau
PM Modi addressed the nation today. In his approximately 30 minutes on air, he told the nation that the coronavirus is not going to go away any sooner and people have to learn to live with it and become self reliant. PM Modi also said that the ongoing lockdown will continue, however it will be quite different then the earlier 3 lockdowns though hr didnot divulge more details, stating that the fine print will be announced before May 18.
Modi hinted that lockdown 4.0 will be “totally new, totally different”.
It is widely believed that there will be more and more relaxations given to public movement, however the public will have to follow stringent behavioral norms like social distancing and personal hygiene.
The highlight of the address to the nation was the economic package, which along with previous packages and RBI reprieves, will amount to Rs 20 lakh crore and which he claimed will address issues pertaining to land, labour, liquidity and loss.
PM said that the package will help India become “self-reliant”. “This package is for the farmers, for our middle class who honestly pay taxes and our industry who are determined to take India to heights,” he said.
He termed economy, infrastructure, technology-driven system, vibrant demography and demanded the five pillars which need to be used by India.
Jan Dhan, Aaadhaar and mobile technology helped the poor and the marginalised during this lockdown and the ambit of reforms needs to be widened so that the impact in future is minimal on individuals, he said.
Modi stressed on a self-reliant India while giving examples of PPE kits, N95 masks and medicines which India produced under the lockdown to meet its demand as well as helping other countries fight coronavirus. The PM said that the crisis is an opportunity to make this century as that of India”s. The economic package is dedicated for that purpose. He said:
“From today onwards, all Indians should be vocal about local. They shouldn”t only buy local products but should equally advertise them with pride.”
While no specifics were given either terms of the economic package or the next lockdown, PM Modi gave some macro points – that Indians will have to learn to live with this virus and use this crisis as an opportunity to once again go local from global, giving the domestic market an impetus. In the meanwhile, the government will stand by not just the poor and marginalised but even the middle class and those from the industry.
