Coronavirus lockdown: Govt unveils Rs 1.7-trillion package for the poor

Sitharaman also promised a one-time payment to women Jan Dhan accountholders and economically backward widows, pensioners, and differently abled

A couple of days after the three-week nationwide lockdown came into force, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a Rs 1.7-trillion food-security and income-transfer package for the urban and rural poor.
 

The package includes free foodgrain for 800 million people for three months, insurance cover for essential-service providers, front loading PM Kisan instalments, and increase in wages under the employment guarantee programme.
 

Sitharaman also promised a one-time payment to women Jan Dhan accountholders and widows belonging to economically backward sections, pensioners, and differently abled; extra free cylinders for Ujjwala beneficiaries; a hike in collateral-free loans for self-help groups; operationalising a