NEW DELHI: A day after Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the final tranche of the Centre's economic package, India Inc said it may not be able to boost economic activities as hoped for, as the supply chain is still struggling with lockdown rules, exodus of labour and fear psychosis.
No matter how much stimulus you give, unless the economy does not start and sustain itself, it will not be sustainable growth. The more you delay, the more problem you will have in expanding," said Deepak Sood, secretary general, Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry. The industry claimed that even in the zones that are now allowed to have normal functioning of factories and offices, lack of labour is a major issue.
"The economy is opening up, but many of the labourers needed have migrated back to villages. How will we function without labour? With transportation still restricted, we don’t feel they will return anytime soon," said a Maruti Suzuki India official.
Chambers also pointed out that sections of the industry that had suffered the most due to the lockdown remain disappointed as they have been left out of the relief package. "While these measures will surely help the economy in medium-to-long-term, we are hopeful that Centre will consider measures to support battered segments of industry including tourism, hospitality, aviation and healthcare," FICCI said in a statement.
FICCI has requested that a minimum amount of Rs 20,000 crore be allotted for these sectors as they have witnessed huge dips in demand.The service sector too had its own share of woes. "Many staff still insists on working from home. There is certainly a fear psychosis. In this context, starting a healthy office environment will be a tough task," said a senior HR manager with TCS.
Battered and ignored
FICCI said Centre’s relief package has left out those sections of the industry that have suffered the most due to the lockdown.
Rs 20,000 cr was sought by FICCI for the sectors most hit by lockdown
With the exodus of migrant labourers back to their home towns, restarting has become difficult
With employees insisting on work from home, bringing them back to offices remains a challenge