In what could come as a puzzle to those at Mint Street, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said the Rs 20-lakh-crore economic stimulus package to deal with the fallout of Covid-19 includes Rs 8.01-lakh-crore liquidity measures announced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

While the RBI’s contribution accounts for a large chunk (40 per cent) of the stimulus, Sitharaman did not disclose the math behind this figure.

In fact, at the press conference held in the national capital, she also claimed that the RBI has estimated the effect of its measures at over Rs 9 lakh crore and that the government decided to take on board a sum of Rs 8.01 lakh crore, which she said was the actual “utilised” figure.

“The actual utilised money from the RBI’s measures was Rs 8 lakh crore. They may have announced over Rs 9 lakh crore, but the liquidity going to the people is Rs 8,01,603 crore…this is what the actual figure we have taken,” Sitharaman said.

Even as the RBI has been at the forefront by announcing several measures since March to shield the economy from the effects of coronavirus, it has till date, at least not publicly, claimed that its steps have led to a liquidity infusion of Rs 9 lakh crore.

Officials of the central bank did not comment on the number or how it was reached, but observers were wondering whether the finance minister had included the three-month loan moratorium (as it also leads to cash in the hands of people or companies) to the measures announced by the Reserve Bank of India in March and April.

Though data is not available on the absolute amount that is involved, rating agency Crisil had estimated in April that the three-month suspension of EMIs could provide a liquidity breather of Rs 2.10 lakh crore if all corporates avail it.

In a recent tweet, the finance minister’s office said that 3.2-crore account holders in state-owned banks had availed the moratorium. There are speculations that the RBI may now extend this moratorium by another three months to August 31.