From Breakingviews: If India’s lockdown is imperfect, it is also unaffordable for those living on the margins, writes ugalani.
A doctor scans residents from Dharavi, one of Asia's largest slums, with an infrared thermometer to check their temperature as a precautionary measure against the spread of the coronavirus disease , in Mumbai, India, April 11, 2020. REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas
India has taken some crisis cues from China, using drones to warn residents to stay at home and police have used force to deter violators. And it’s leaning hard on the private sector: large conglomerates from Reliance Industries to the Tata group have poured millions of dollars into Modi’s “PM Cares” fund.
The resulting shortage of labour, as well as general fear of the pandemic, is breaking poorly organised supply chains. Farm workers and many in the agricultural trade are exempted from the lockdown but without a way to market, crops are being left to rot and cows are dining on strawberries, as my Reuters colleague Rajendra Jadhav notes. [
That pushes more of the burden onto weak banks: IndusInd Bank’s share price is down 73% this year as confidence falters in the system’s ability to cope. Many individual and corporate borrowers are getting a three-month grace-period on repayments, but interest still accrues at 8% or more. And there is no reprieve for the most vulnerable who tap moneylenders at much higher costs. The result is that hundreds of millions of Indians are at risk of falling deeper into poverty and, or a debt trap.
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