New economic package will help fight COVID-19 crisis: Sawant

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said the new economic package announced by the Centre will provide relief to the poor and strengthen the efforts to fight coronavirus.

The central government has unveiled a Rs 1.70 lakh crore economic package involving free foodgrain and cooking gas to poor for the next three months, one-time doles to women and poor senior citizens, higher wages to workers and measures to boost liquidity of employees as it looked to contain the impact of unprecedented nationwide lockdown.

Over 80 crore ration card holders will each get 5 kg of wheat or rice and one kg of preferred pulses free of cost every month for the next three months to ensure that the poor are not hungry because of the close down of businesses.

Praising the Centre's move, Sawant tweeted, "The decision of Honble Prime Minister Shri @narendramodiji to provide 1 lakh 70 thousand crores package through Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana is commendable."

"This will provide great relief to the poor and will strengthen the effort to fight #COVID19," he added.

As part of the new economic package, poor women, who got free cooking gas under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana during the last three years, will get free LPG refills in the next three months to tide over tight finance following the nationwide lockdown.

Besides, 20.5 crore women Jan Dhan Account holders will get Rs 500 per month for the next three months, while poor senior citizens, widows and disabled will get a one-time cash dole of Rs 1,000.