The magnitude of the figure that was declared by the Government as the Covid economic relief was what excited the citizens of this country. A whopping INR 20 lakh crores it is; figure which many of us won’t be able to even count.

Perhaps, two previous proclamations might have excited the public like this one has. Once on the news that Modiji has announced getting back the black money into India and distributing INR 15 lakhs to each citizen’s Bank account; and secondly on the news that Rahulji has announced he would make a machine that would turn potatoes into gold.

Pun apart, economic relief package to the tune of 10% of the nation’s GDP was never witnessed in the history of this country and that was what got the eyebrows raised.

There was an honest expectation among many, including me that a package aimed for the poor would strive to offer immediate relief given that they have borne the brunt of the lockdown-related distress for over so many days now.

Unfortunately, at a time when the measures should have been focused on providing immediate relief to the poorer segments of society, it quite obviously seems skewed more towards the long-term horizon.

Let us analyse a few proposals on this yardstick: