A MIXED BLESSING
On May 12, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the Rs 20 lakh crore economic stimulus package, he added that part of it had already been disbursed in the form of the Rs 1.7 lakh crore Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP), announced on March 26. Over the next two days, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman not only gave an account of the implementation of the PMGKP, but also added some additional welfare measures to the package. The PMGKP, announced to provide relief to the marginalised sections during the lockdown, had multiple components—direct benefit transfers (DBT) in cash, support in the form of free foodgrains, benefits for low income workers and farmers, insurance for health workers fighting COVID-19 and funds for the battle against the pandemic. Of these, cash transfers through the DBT
