The government should shut down 20 ministries and 100 departments, extend the goods and services tax to alcohol and petrol, and review the role of the Reserve Bank of India, said a group affiliated to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Arth Yagna, which describes itself as an organisation of nationalist professionals, wants the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act and norms for small businesses suspended for a year. It wants salaries cut for all central and state government employees by 30 per cent till March 2021; easy credit for migrant workers affected in the lockdown to contain the coronavirus and anti-dumping and non-tariff barriers on China.

“The present situation, painful as it is, conceals unprecedented opportunities within existential threats. If we can identify these and take the necessary resolute and timely action, Bharat can recover its glory of centuries past. Our past was heroic and laden with greatness. Our future is to be a global superpower,” the letter said.

The letter says the government’s steps to lift up the economy have not been implemented on the ground. "A clear sign of lack of information flow from the ground level through the corridors of bureaucracy is visible."

Arth Yagna comprises advocates, scientists, engineers, economists, chartered accountants, management practitioners and entrepreneurs. A similar Pune-based organisation had suggested demonetisation as a way to get back black money: a policy that the government adopted in 2016.