Extending The Lockdown Will Put The Indian Economy In Coma- The Fight Against Covid

The spread of coronavirus and need for lockdown has reached to a certain level in India where this pandemic is not only affecting the health of people but also it has shaken the economy globally, at the global level the outbreak of coronavirus has infected 1,359,010 people and 75,900 numbers of people are dead. The coronavirus in the world is spreading like a wildfire. In India the number of coronavirus cases has reached to 4,858.

We all are aware of the fact that, the coronavirus crisis was first started from china in Wuhan province in mid December and till March end this havoc was spread globally across the world affecting the countries like Italy, America, Spain, Germany, France, and Switzerland which have the world’s strongest economy and these countries are now struggling with their economy as the coronavirus outbreak has done a disaster to it. Now, think of a country like India which is still developing in terms of its economy, medical facilities, infrastructure and many other factors. What impact will this pandemic have on India’s economy?

Let’s talk about the impact of coronavirus and lockdown on india economy till now:

India has a huge dependence on China in terms of importing the products. 45% of the electronic appliances are imported from china, around one-third of the machinery and two-third of the organic chemicals are also being exported from china, and around 60-70% of pharmaceutical items are also exported from china.

After being so much depended on china for so many products it is clear that due to the COVID-19 outbreak the import dependence of India on china had a huge impact on the country’s economy. Not only India imports from china but also most of the products like chemical fertilizers, food grains, machinery, plastic, iron and steel and many other products are imported from America and from other parts of the globe as well.

The fact can never be ignored that the outbreak of COVID-19 which started in china have significantly affected the global economy including the economic slowdown in trade, supply chain, distribution, logistics and in other aspects also. In terms of trade china is the world’s largest exporter and second largest importer.

Effects of 21 days lockdown across the country:

Due to the coronavirus crisis Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a complete lockdown of 21 days in the country to fight the pandemic. The lockdown has significantly affected various industries of the country as the industries like hotel, tourism, automobile, pharma, aviation, media and entertainment etc. have seen a decline in their growth by 40-60% due to the lockdown imposed for COVID-19.

The coronavirus crisis has not only affected these industries but it has a huge impact on all the three sectors of the economy i.e. primary sector, secondary sector, and tertiary sector these three sectors of the economy is interconnected to each other, agricultural sector or we can say primary sector has a 75% of its share in the growth of the economy as the basic raw material for production is growth and produced through the agriculture, now after the complete lockdown in the country the production process has become slow and almost non-existent.

A factory or an industry needs raw material that comes from agricultural sector or from the import from other countries, for agriculture too it need various resources which are not available due to the shutdown of the market, for transporting the final product to the potential consumers logistics and transportation is needed that too is not available due to the shortage of labour as most of the workers have left to their respective home town because they have no work here due to the shutdown of the industry and market because of the lockdown.

This all has happened in only mere 16 days; imagine the situation if the lockdown would have been upto 21 days then even worst can happen to the economy of India.

What if the lockdown would extend after 21 days?

The lockdown for 21 days was imposed as the possibility of getting a cure from the epidemic was there because the cases in India was limited to 1000+ and the infected people were recovering at a good pace, but unfortunately after the congregation that took place weeks ago in Nizamuddin at, tablighi jamaat markaz led to the rise in the cases upto 4000+.

The Indian prime minister regarding the rise in the no. of the coronavirus cases and to extent the lockdown in India organized a conference meeting with states chief ministers. Taking in the considerations of the failed lockdown and rise in the no. of the infected cases it can be predicted that the lockdown will be further extended and it can be stretch up to the mid may.

Since coronavirus have staggered the economic fabric of the country completely be it the big multinational companies or a small-startup everyone in the market is facing a decline in their growth, further extension in the lockdown would definitely bring the economy of the country into the depression. The entire occupational structure will be adversely affected as all the three sectors will fail to reach at their highest potential point.

The extension in the lockdown in India will bring the Indian economy to a level where the Indian government had to struggle each day with food and medical supply without any revenue-generating sources. Rise in the unemployment by 50-60% in all the sectors, hunger in the country because of the low level of production, no means of globalization and industrialization. Thus, a longer lockdown will definitely put the country into a state of comma from where the chances of the recovery will be slow and drastic.

“In a situation like this where the country is in a situation of a trench or a well. It is the best time for the Indian government to prove itself that, it is suitable for the country, where the decision making is tricky whether to extend the lockdown or not because extension will lead to the economic depression and non extension will led to the spread of coronavirus adversely across the country”