New Delhi: India will need to spend Rs. 65, 000 crores to help with food and cash the poor reeling under the effect of the Covid- 19 crisis, said former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan. Speaking on the reviving the economy in a video interaction with Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, who launched a series on Thursday that will feature global and domestic experts on issues related to the pandemic.

The former RBI Governor answered to a question of Rahul Gandhi about the cost of helping the poor, Raghuram Rajan said we will need Rs. 65, 000 crores, it is not that much. The renowned economist said a permanent lock down was not sustainable. We need to be cleverer in lifting the lock down. He also said we need to open up in measured way as India does not have the capacity to feed people for long. We have to manage the reopening so when there are cases we isolate them, he added.

Reimposing lock down after lifting would hurt the credibility in the fight against Covid- 19, he said.