Raghuram Rajan believes India must spend ₹65,000 crore to help the poor and the government can afford it

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Raghuram Rajan believes India must spend ₹65,000 crore to help the poor and the government can afford it
Former Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan during the Book Launch I do what I do in Chennai on 5th September 2017 Photo: Ramesh Shankar
  • Dr Raghuram Rajan said, India will need a budget of ₹65,000 crore to help the poor during this pandemic.
  • Rajan says India needs at least 2 million tests a day, to which it is nowhere close to as of now.
  • He also thinks India’s authoritarian model gives disempowered people a sense that there is a strong figure to take care of them.
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In a conversation with Rahul Gandhi of Indian National Congress, the former RBI governor Dr Raghuram Rajan said that the Indian government needs to spend ₹65,000 crore to save the livelihoods of poor which were disrupted during the Coronavirus pandemic.

“India should do this. ₹65,000 cr, which is not much considering our GDP, which is ₹200 lakh crore. We can afford this money to save the livelihoods of India’s poor,” said Rajan said.


These comments came after India announced a ₹1.7 lakh crore package including cash transfers to feed the poor during the coronavirus lockdown. Also, the industry awaits a second relief package which is expected to be announced soon. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) also announced a series of measures that would inject around ₹3.74 lakh crore into the system.

Two million tests a day

To tackle the pandemic itself, Rajan says that India needs to perform at least 2 million tests a day. “We are nowhere close to it as of now,” he said, batting for.

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He also said the lockdown could not go on forever; the government must plan an exit and manage it well. “We have to be clever, as we go into reopening,” he added. As of now, many states like Maharashtra said that they will not re-open after the extended lockdown ends on May 3.

In the 28-minute long dialogue, Gandhi has quizzed the former RBI governor about political as well as economic issues.

“It’s appealing to the people who are disempowered, and it gives them the sense that there is a strong figure and you will be taken care of,” Rajan said in response to Gandhi’s question that asking him what he thinks of the authoritarian model.

The interaction between Raghuram Rajan and Rahul Gandhi was streamed live on social media platforms.

Rajan is Gandhi first guest in his video series where he will interview economy and health on his show called #RahulShowsTheWay.

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