Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day lockdown to stop the spread of coronavirus. On the other hand, some of Indian and migrant workers does not know how to survive. As a matter of fact, the factory shut down due to the coronavirus.
Quoted from BBC News, one of the migrant workers, Neeraj Kumar decided to flee. He and his family joined a throng of people leaving the city soon after the lockdown announcement. On the other hand, the government stopped the public transport systems. Therefore, many of them decided to walk miles away.
But the economic fallout of this unprecedented lockdown has been dire. Businesses have closed, unemployment has risen and productivity has fallen. India’s growth engine was actually sputtering well before the threat of outbreak arrived. Once one of the fastest growing economies in the world, its growth slowed to 4.7% last year – the slowest level in six years.
Now, experts say the coronavirus outbreak is likely to further cripple the already frail economy.
Arun Kumar, as the economist, gave the response. He said, “With thousands of migrant workers stuck miles away from their homes, the seamless distribution of cash and food needs to be the government’s top priority.”
Coronavirus Impacted to the Field Rice Farmers
Furthermore, it’s not just migrant workers at risk. Farmers are also vulnerable to a potential economic shock from the lockdown – the agriculture industry contributes nearly $265bn to GDP.
According to BBC News, the government says it will give farmers 2,000 rupees ($30) in April as an advance payment from an $80 annual pay-out to tide over the situation.
“This money will be inadequate because exports have stopped. Prices in cities will rise because of profiteering and in rural areas they will drop because farmers won’t be able to sell their crop,” says economist Arun Kumar.
Therefore, if supply chains don’t work properly, a lot of food will be wasted and lead to massive losses for Indian farmers.