What Happened Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has unveiled a fiscal stimulus package that will almost immediately nullify the 3.5 percent of GDP deficit target outlined in its new 2020-2021 budget, which was passed on March 23. The $22.6 billion package includes a number of measures such as direct payments to farmers and distributing cooking gas to the country’s poorest citizens. The package comes as Modi announced the country would go into a 21-day shutdown beginning March 24 to contain the spread of COVID-19 in India. Mitigating the Immediate Impact Amid the escalating COVID-19 crisis, it's unsurprising that Modi's government has moved to abandon its budget deficit target, which was already overly optimistic in growth and revenue projections. The country's economic growth has continued to slow for the past six consecutive quarters, and a three-week shutdown due to the outbreak will only slow economic activity more.