Indian finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently said the government has taken several measures to support the economy and did not restrict the opportunities to any particular sector to keep the industry floating, but no amount of intervention is adequate to deal with the crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. She was addressing the annual general meeting of the Indian Chamber of Commerce.

She said public expenditure, including on capital and infrastructure, will be kept up in the next budget.

Several sovereign and pension funds are willing to come to India with long-term commitments, which is leading to the higher inward flow of foreign direct investment than comparable economies, she was quoted as saying by Indian media reports.

The disinvestment agenda, which got cabinet clearance, will go on and banks will be run by professionals with risk officers brought in from outside and not appointed from within, she said.

“We are seeing clear signs of revival. But that has to sustain. We need inputs from the industry at this extraordinary time during Budget-making,” Sitharaman added.