Most reports and studies by official agencies, international think tanks and private entities indicate the cataclysmic impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the economy and society. They anticipate that lockdowns imposed by various countries across the globe to reduce the exponential diffusion of COVID-19 (i.e. for flattening the curve by social distancing and quarantines) would adversely affect economic growth and disrupt supply chains in most sectors, on top of causing...

-The Indian Express The states must engage NGOs, factories and charities including religious organisations to raise funds for meeting the expenditure on milk, eggs, cooking oil and vegetables, and even soaps and sanitisers. Nearly one-fifth of India’s labour force consists of internal migrants. As per the 2011 census, a quarter of the urban population consists of migrants. These tend to be predominantly male, from the less developed northern states, in the lower...

-Vikalp.ind.in The unprecedented fear of Covid-19 leading to ‘social distancing’ through lockdown in the entire India has yet again unfolded the plight of informal sector workers even in the midst of a universal public health crisis worldwide. The lockdown, for a huge number of informal sector workers is associated with the loss of livelihood; but for others engaged in low-valued essential works such as home delivery, scavenging and cleaning the society,...

-The New Indian Express Being jobless and stranded, migrants workers are not only struggling to make ends meet but are now also fighting a stigma as 'virus' carriers. New Delhi: On Monday night, 23-year-old Mahesh Damor, along with five other migrant workers, realised they have no source of income to rely on in Gujarat’s Surat. So they decided to walk - over 300 km from Surat to his village in Jhalod taluka in...

After the outbreak of COVID-19 in China during early January this year and its dissemination globally within a few days, health experts have suggested ways to check its spread exponentially among the rest of the population. In the age of internet connectivity, work-from-home and self-isolation have been advised as solutions to ensure social distancing and avoid large-scale social gatherings. Experts have asked governments and private enterprises to keep people at...