The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) President Sangita Reddy has said that the economy can be revived only by boosting consumer sentiments, which are weak and need measures like discount vouchers from the government to spur the pending. She added that the government needs to literally pump up the economy with some more spending at a time when around 20 million jobs have been lost and there is a fear of ‘uncertainty’ amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Reddy said ‘what we need to do significantly is to ramp up demand stimulus. Factories are saying we have gone up to 60-70 per cent production, credit lines are better, little bit of export orders are coming back into play’. However, she said that ‘the consumer sentiment is weak and without (strong) consumer sentiment, you will not have the economy coming back’. She noted that the government needs to come out with more direct cash transfer as far as possible, especially with the festive season around the corner.
She said FICCI has given recommendation to the government to say why do not you give consumption vouchers. She said ‘So, if there is a significant discount, 30-50 per cent discount, which is backed by government spending, this would be one more methodology to ramp up the demand’. Calling for no more sporadic lockdowns to curb the pandemic, she said the government also needs to ensure that while pushing for the normalcy, the lifting of lockdown is perfect and economy on all fronts, including aviation, come back. At the same time, the government should also continue with the macro-economic reforms.