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- India’s health ministry has confirmed 6,412 Covid-19 cases (5,709 active cases) and 199 fatalities. The Times of India on Friday reported, based on state figures, 233 fatalities. 787 fresh cases were recorded on Thursday.
- Fatalities across the world are nearing the grim mark of 100,000, with 95,735 recorded as of Friday noon by the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Centre. Over 1.6 million have been infected world over. Fatalities in the UK have climbed to 7,978.
As of Friday noon
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| TODAY’S TAKE |
| Extended lockdown could worsen India’s supply shock |
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- India’s supply chain may be strained to the breaking point if the nationwide lockdown is extended, reports Economic Times, unless policymakers take steps to mitigate the pain points such as labour shortage and disruption in transportation. With millions of migrant workers either locked in or back home, and with governments escalating their containment strategy, businesses are struggling to deploy even 20% of the required labour force, ET reports. Acutely hit are consumer goods companies and e-commerce including online grocers. India could even face a shortage of edible oil, warn company executives such as Angshu Mallick, COO of Adani Wilmar.
- Retailers say staples such as atta (wheat flour) and dal (pulses) are in short supply. Dal is in short supply as nearly 75% of the mills in agro-producing states such as Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra are closed, reports Times of India.
- The news is grim in commodities markets as well. The prices of key staples, barring cereals, have surged nearly three times from a month ago due to supply shock, reports Hindustan Times. It highlights three contributing factors: Arrivals of farm commodities in the agricultural produce market committees (APMC) have plunged by almost 60% in some markets from the first week of March; land transportation costs have risen sharply, as truckers struggle to cross interstate boundaries; and restrictions and quarantine measures have resulted in serious labour shortages, affecting the loading, unloading and sorting of commodities. Take onion as a barometer. In Nashik’s Lasalgaon, Asia’s biggest onion market, arrivals are down by over 80%, data from the National Horticulture Research and Development Foundation shows. India’s official retail inflation data for March is due for release on April 13.
- Anecdotal evidence from areas under strict “hard lockdown” is not comforting either. Residents locked in in the 12 hotspots in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, are struggling for daily essentials, reports Times of India. Though district administration has assured doorstep delivery of essentials, the day one of the hard lockdown — the areas have been sealed till April 15 — was hardly smooth, with residents complaining of lack of supply of milk, bread and packaged water. A similar situation prevailed in hotspots in Noida.
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