The countdown to Budget 2022 has begun and India is in the midst of resurgence in coronavirus cases driven by the new Omicron variant. While this pose downside risks to the economic growth, the impact isn’t expected to be significant.
Nonetheless, contact-intensive sectors, travel, tourism and hospitality sectors have been time and again hit by the pandemic’s onslaught.
Besides, private consumption is yet to come to pre-Covid levels which underscore stressed household incomes.
Data provided by CMIE – or Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy – suggests that stress is more in lower tier and rural households where consumption to income ratio is generally higher.
Given this, the Street expects Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to dole out fiscal measures to increase disposable incomes of people at the bottom of the pyramid.