In an admission which would bring cheers to the beleaguered economy reeling under Covid-19 pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday has said that due to recent efforts, several green shoots in the economy have now become visible. According to him, rise in power consumption (which was earlier falling), increase in fertilizer sale, healthy sale in Kharif sowing (as compared to last year), digital payment reaching pre-lockdown levels, increase in toll collections in May and bouncing back of exports are the encouraging signs. The PM made this statement during his sixth interaction with the Chief Ministers during the lockdown.
He also told the gathering of the CMs that due to timely decisions, India has been able to fare much better than many nations. PM Modi said that the government tried to save each and every life and that all modes of transport have opened and lakhs of migrant labourers have travelled back to their villages. Emphasising on the way the world has praised the discipline shown by Indians, he added that the recovery rate in the country is now over 50% with a very low mortality rate. He, however, cautioned and said that if we remained disciplined and followed all rules, coronavirus would cause least damage. Talking about the importance of face masks for every person, he also spoke about following “do gaj doori” and highlighted how any laxity in discipline would weaken the fight against Covid-19.
PM Modi also spoke about the importance of agriculture, horticulture, fisheries and MSMEs as parts of “Aatmanirbhar Bharat”. He mentioned the importance of working together on value chains to give fillip to trade and industry. Specific economic activity points in the state should work 24 hours a day and loading and unloading should be quickened to give further boost to economic activity, he added.
The interaction was the first part of the two-day interaction and witnessed participation from states and UTs like Punjab, Ass a m , Kerala , Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Manipur, Nagaland, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Puducherry, Mizoram, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, Sikkim and Lakshadweep. The CMs provided feedback about existing health infrastructure in their respective states and efforts to tackle the impact of the virus. They also spoke about the awareness campaign being run by them, help being provided to the workers who have returned home, usage of the Aarogya Setu app, and kickstarting of economic activities in the state.
The Prime Minister thanked the CMs for their views and underscored the importance of being focused on both life and livelihood. The second interaction with the CMs of states like Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Delhi and others will be held today.