Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday asked Union ministers to prepare plans to fight the economic impact of COVID-19 on war footing and asserted that this crisis is an opportunity to boost the ‘Make-in-India’ initiative and reduce dependence on other countries.
Chairing the first meeting of the council of ministers viavideo-conferencing after announcing a 21-day lockdown to combat the coronavirusoutbreak, Modi indicated a phased emergence from the lockdown and said that”a graded plan to slowly open departments where hotspots aren’t existingshould be made”.
Talking about the impact of COVID-19 on the economy, Modisaid that the government must work on war footing to mitigate the impact,adding that the ministries should prepare a business continuity plan, the PrimeMinister’s Office said in a statement.
Emphasising the need to strategise for the emergentconditions once the lockdown ends, he asked the ministers to prepare a list often major decisions and ten priority areas of focus while at the same timeidentify and implement pending reforms in their ministries.
“Ministries should prepares a Business Continuity Planand be ready to fight the economic impact of COVID-19 on war footing. Thecrisis is also an opportunity to boost Make in India and reduce dependence onother countries,” Modi told the ministers, according to the statement.
Highlighting the impact on India’s exports, he asked theministers to submit actionable suggestions on boosting manufacturing andexports and ensure that new sectors and countries are added in India’s exportnet.
Discussing the impact of COVID-19 on farmers and harvestingof crops, Modi asked the ministers to explore the use of innovative solutionslike ‘truck aggregators’ on the lines of app-based cab services to connectfarmers with mandis.
“Welfare of farmers is of high importance. Governmentwould provide all possible help to farmers in the harvesting season,” Modisaid and suggested use of technology and encouraging exploration of innovativesolutions in agriculture.
The ministers provided feedback to the prime minister on thesteps being taken to meet the challenges in tackling the impact of the pandemicand praised the initiative of lighting lamps, saying people from all corners ofthe country participated in it.