分类： bharat

In his fifth address to the nation on Covid-19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an economic package to “make India self-reliant” signaling that the government has shifted its coronavirus strategy from “survival” to “revival” mode. The details of the economic package will be unveiled in days to come.

PM Modi said if the latest package is added to the economic package announced recently by the government in the wake of Covid-19 crisis and the decisions taken by the RBI, “today’s package totals to Rs 20 lakh crore.”

He said, “This is 10 per cent of India’s GDP.”

Before we proceed, let’s recall some numbers.

PM Modi made it clear that the Rs 20 lakh package includes liquidity infusion by the RBI in phases recently, and also Rs 1.7 lakh crore package announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on March 27.

The RBI’s first major decision came even before coronavirus had become an Indian crisis. On February 6, the RBI announced measures to inject liquidity in the economy to the tune of Rs 2.8 lakh crore.

When coronavirus outbreak became an Indian phenomenon, the RBI announced on March 27 – the same day as Sitharaman announced the special package – to inject an additional liquidity of around Rs 3.75 lakh crore.

On April 17 and 27, the RBI infused Rs 1 lakh crore more liquidity through two separate announcements. The monetary value of all these announcements (Sitharaman plus RBI) comes at around Rs 9.75 lakh crore.

The rest, that is, Rs 10.25 lakh crore is likely to be the actual announcement made by PM Modi on Tuesday evening. Standalone, this is little over 5 per cent of India’s GDP.

Six migrant labourers who were walking from Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar to their homes in Bihar were run over by a bus late on Wednesday.

Besides six migrant labourers who died on spot, four workers have been injured in the incident, confirmed Prashant Kumar, ADG, Meerut zone. All of them were working as labourers in Punjab.

The road accident occurred on Saharanpur road in Nagar Kotwali area.

Just a day ago, three migrant labourers and an infant girl were killed while 46 others suffered injuries in two road accidents when they were returning to their homes in Uttar Pradesh from other states.

In another incident that shook the nation last week, 16 migrant labourers were mowed down by a goods train in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra. They, too, were walking back to their homes in Madhya Pradesh.

Over a month-and-a-half after passenger trains were suspended due to the nationwide lockdown announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus, the Indian Railways will on Tuesday partially resume its operations. Initially, 15 pairs of special trains will be run with air-conditioned coaches accommodating the passengers. This comes even as the number of COVID-19 cases in the country continue to rise and neared and the 73,000-mark. So is it safe to travel on public transport? Let’s understand through this Q&A.

What happens to social distancing?

The entry into a railway station has been restricted only through a single gate across cities where the train will be playing in the coming days. The station entries have been earmarked to ensure social distancing until people board the train. All passengers shall be wearing face covers/masks at the entry and during the travel.

However, the major concern remains. When the trains run full capacity, how will social distancing be followed? In fact, ‘Shramik’ Special Trains, which were running with 54 people against the capacity of 72 seats per coach, will also now run in full capacity.

What if my co-passenger is Covid-19 positive but asymptomatic and shows symptoms during the travel?

The railways claim the passengers will undergo thermal screening at stations. Passengers having symptoms like fever, cold, cough or breathing problems won’t be allowed to board trains. Only asymptomatic passengers are allowed to enter/board the train. All passengers are requested to download the Aarogya Setu app and use it while travelling.

Concern: But what happens if asymptomatic passengers or those with fever take medicine like Crocin and Paracetamol and are not stopped at the thermal screening point. Since they are all air-conditioned trains, doesn’t it put all the travellers at risk?

What amenities will you get while travelling?

The railways has asked the passengers to carry their linen, stating no linen, blankets and curtains shall be provided inside the train. It has asked passengers to carry their food and water. Besides, the ticket charges won’t include any e-catering or pre-paid meal charges and IRCTC will provide limited dry and ready to eat food and drinking water.

Concern: Most of the trains involve long-duration journeys. With summers already setting in, the home-cooked food may perish soon. You will have no option to get down at the station to buy food or water and have to buy it from the train vendors only at the charges they levy.

Is it economical to travel by train?

The trains tickets for these special trains can be booked only through IRCTC website. The travel fare for these special trains is equivalent to that of Rajdhani trains. Online cancellation shall be permitted up to 24 hours before the scheduled departure of the train. No cancellation permitted less than 24 hours before the departure of train. Cancellation charge shall be 50% of the fare.

Concern: In such a challenging time, should the public transport think of profitability or be more flexible to its customers? With inter-state border transportation not allowed, if you are unable to reach the railway station to board a train, you will have to pay the penalty.