The most heartening aspect of the Centre’s latest announcement to spur the economy, a package worth over 2.65-lakh crore, is the implied realisation that the economy is not yet out of the woods. Over the past month, with several high frequency indicators registering an uptick, the Finance Ministry has often asserted that a sustainable recovery is under way, hitting out at analysts who hinted that the spike reflected pent-up demand and could be transient. From that standpoint, the fresh stimulus, exactly a month after the LTC cash voucher scheme to revive spending, suggests the government has not taken its eye off the ball while purveying hope and promise. That the package takes cognisance of India’s jobs crisis and seeks to resuscitate the construction sector — the largest job creator — bodes well. One, it acknowledges the spate of job losses in the formal sector, and rural distress, as the pandemic and lockdowns hit home. Second, by pushing urban housing projects, introducing tax sops to help primary sales of unsold units worth upto ₹2 crore, and freeing up capital requirements to bid for public contracts, there is demonstration of a commitment to get the maximum bang for each precious fiscal rupee by focusing on a sector with multiplier effects. Apart from creating formal and informal jobs, this would drive up demand for steel, cement and other materials.