Finance Minister releases fourth tranche of economic package, hails PM Modi as great reformer

New Delhi, May 16: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday held a press conference where she announced the fourth tranche of the Rs 20 lakh crore economic stimulus that was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Finance Minister said that the fourth tranche on the Centre's Rs 20 lakh crore economic stimulus package focuses primarily on structural reforms.

Addressing the press conference, Nirmala Sitharaman hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a "great reformer" who has had a strong track record of "taking up deep, systemic reforms".

"Many sectors need policy simplification. Once we de-congest sectors, we can also provide the necessary boost," the Finance Minister said.

"As all of you know that PM Modi has a strong track record where reforms are concerned," she also said.

"In the last couple of months, an empowered group of secretaries were formed to look into project development. Ranking of states on investment attractiveness to compete for new reforms," Sitharaman said.

The Finance Minister further said that schemes would be implemented in states through challenge mode for industrial cluster upgradation of common infrastructure facilities and connectivity. "3,376 industrial parks/estates/SEZs in 5 lakh hectares mapped on industrial information system. All industrial parks will be ranked in 2020-12," she added.

Earlier, in the first tranche of the economic stimulus, the Finance Minister focused on the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and the middle class. The second tranche took care of migrant workers and small shopkeepers. The third tranche saw the Finance Minister focusing on agriculture and its allied activities.