Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has unveiled measures in a press conference for businesses, including MSMEs, to recover from the economic impact due to COVID-19

20 lakh crore package includes the previous Rs 1.7 lakh crore stimulus announced by the Finance Minister and steps taken by the RBI

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman addressing press conference on May 13, outlined the first tranche of the contours of India’s massive Rs 20 lakh crore fiscal stimulus announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

FM Sitharaman said the announcements will be made in tranches. Today’s tranche will include measures as follows: 6 are for MSMEs, 2 are for EPF, 2 for NBFCs and MFIs, 1 for discoms, 1 for contractors, 1 for real estate sector, and 3 tax measures.

The financial stimulus announced by PM Modi is almost 10 percent of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) and comes as the country battles the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic.This Rs 20 lakh crore figure, however, includes the previous Rs 1.7 lakh crore stimulus package announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and steps taken by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) since lockdown began on March 24 midnight. These earlier measures now together account to Rs 7.79 lakh crore of the complete package.