Finance Minister, Sitharaman requests Indian industries to “watch the next few days a bit more carefully”

On Wednesday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman assured the industry of complete government assistance but advised them to wait and watch for the coming few days to determine the situation during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, as the government implements policies to safeguard all lives and livelihoods.

She was speaking to the national executive committee members of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, “I would request the industry to watch the next few days a bit more carefully, and then assess for yourself what this quarter is going to be like.”

The Finance Minister hailed the Indian industry for its patience, perseverance, and forbearance. She said along with the new vaccination guidelines and with the five-fold strategy adopted in handling the Covid cases; test, track, treat, Covid-19 protocols and vaccination, there will be a sense of reassurance.

She further told the attendees of the virtual meeting, “Industry is watching out and I would want you (industry) to keenly observe what is going on and we are together with the industry in (fighting) this (pandemic). I am sure all of us together will understand how best to now ramp-up and sustain the growth momentum which all of us are keen to see between the last quarter and this quarter.”

According to the trajectory of the Nomura India Business Resumption Index, the escalating second wave of Covid-19 cases in India is threatening to disrupt the economy's steady recovery over the last year.

Sitharaman emphasised on the importance of using a micro containment approach to cope with the pandemic's second wave since the world has vital resources like vaccines and medicines which makes them better equipped with treating the infected.

Sitharaman underlined the fact that after the outbreak of the pandemic, the government has expanded the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECGLS 2.0) to industries which were hit the worst due to the pandemic such as hospitality, aviation, travel, tourism, and hotels.