"India’s gross domestic product (GDP) will contract in the first quarter, but is likely to grow 2% for the full financial year and that a stimulus is expected “soon,” said Chief economic adviser KV Subramanian. But he cautioned against demands for government support similar to that provided by other nations as the cost would be too high.
Comparisons with stimulus packages in other countries were invalid, he said. He drew parallels with the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918, suggesting a sharp revival.
“From an epidemiological perspective and from the magnitude of the pandemic, the Spanish flu is a reasonable proxy to use and because there was a V-shaped recovery, I think it is reasonable to say that we can expect the same,” Subramanian said.