Union Cabinet meeting today: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is today chairing an important meeting of the Union Cabinet meeting scheduled for 11:30 AM. Today’s meeting is significant as it would be the first Cabinet meeting after the government’s completion of the first year in office for a second term. The Modi 2.0 government completed one year in office on Sunday.
The Cabinet Committee on Security and the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs are also expected to meet before the Union Cabinet.
According to multiple media reports, some significant decisions are expected when Prime Minister Narendra Modi chairs the full Cabinet meet on Monday.
The meeting comes in the midst of India’s standoff with China in Ladakh, and on a day it embarks on the first phase of unlocking the economy. Both issues are likely to figure when the committees on security and economic affairs meet today.
Indian economy is facing a slowdown due to the Coronavirus-induced lockdown that brought all economic activities to a grinding halt. The government has, however, started economic activities gradually but with strict measures to ensure the virus doesn’t spread.
In lockdown 5.0, the government has significantly eased restrictions and made provisions for the reopening of various sectors including malls, restaurants and places of worship. “The current phase of re-opening, Unlock 1, will have an economic focus,” the Home Ministry said in new guidelines on Saturday.
The GDP growth tumbled to 3.1% in the March quarter — the slowest pace since the global financial crisis more than a decade back. In 2019-20, the Indian economy grew by 4.2%, the slowest in 11 years. According to estimates by the Center for Monitoring Indian Economy, nearly 12 crore people have lost jobs in April.
