Originally posted by: Himalaya10
Its been a difficult month. Uncertainty is killing. I dread the day when I actually have to step out of the house and go to work. In last one month I have realized that this entire evolution thing has gone terribly wrong and we humans are more suited to remain horizontal longer than vertical.
Corporate job holders, govt job holders are doing alright. Small business owners are on the edge. Many small manufacturers have payment cycles of 3-4 months. Finding workers will be difficult in near future for them. Some workers have already snuck out. People who undertook 100's of kilometers of arduous journey home will find it difficult to come back to work within next three months. People who are stuck in small rooms in large cities are dying to go home and will escape at the first opportunity. When they will come back is a difficult question to answer. Their employers are looking at a situation where they cannot get any money until the end of this year (3-4 months of payment cycle + 2-3 months of no new work). Can they sustain? Situation of workers is even worse. They are getting some help from the govt but not sure if that’s enough.
In our housing society, rules have been strict. Curfew round the clock. Roads wear empty look. Vegetables are being sold inside the premises of housing society. Curvacious girls are covering themselves from head to toe and buying onions with lightning speed. If they have to get in the elevator with me, they flinch visibly and then spray fiery anger through their somewhat visible eyes...I suspect that its because I hate wearing mask. I now have an instrument made with a writing pen, filled up with disinfectant. I use it to press buttons in elevator. This whole thing has spiralled out of control.
On personal front, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I don't really care to go out despite my claims of being an outdoor person. Yes, my stock of whiskey got over last week. Sad. But got several recipes of 'how to make beer at home'. However, it involves standing up and mixing stuff...so I gave up. Went out to nearby slums a few times because friend wanted to buy cigarettes and tobacco. Bought at exorbitant prices as the stuff was sold like drugs. One guy was also selling desi-daru out of his hut behind his shanty shop. I suspect that it was just turpentine so passed it.
Looks like we will be back to office in a couple of weeks (we are in red zone!). I had asked my team to try to use this time to learn something new and do something new. As it applies to me also, I grew beard and learned to dye it. It was a revealation. The so-called 'natural black' color of hair dye actually makes beard look unnaturally dark black. Everyone including my old flames got my selfies! A few of them replied with heart emojis and their youtube videos of how to make Pizza without oven and Jalebis. This lockdown is driving people nuts.
Lockdown extended in India. Centre has come up with a different formula to classify red, orange and green zones.
I have friends in all strata - 10th pass, Commerce graduates, Science graduates, engineers, doctors, small businessmen who trade in dry fruits, wholesale vegetables, stationery shops and big businessmen who run factories employing 200 people manufacturing automobile parts, industrial equipment, textiles, etc. Common response to the extension - extreme response lacking sensitivity to reality on the ground.
1) Many small shop owners are on the verge of shutting businesses and becoming wage earners. These types are hoping that there will be a re-think. They feel that there is no way out for them other than to take to streets in protest of lockdown. They fear that they will not be able to sustain even feeding the families.
2) Big business owners under tremendous pressure from their workforce for wages when money supply is hit. They are worried that workforce may not turn up once lockdown is lifted if they dont pay full salaries. Even after lockdown is lifted, production will not start immediately. Once it starts, they can produce but not sell because their markets are closed. If they dont start, they have to keep paying their idle workforce. Even if they start production, the conditions are so stringent that it is impossible to not violate any of them. Catch-22 situation for them. Unfortunately, not all of them can hire management consultants or are sophisticated/savvy managers to have had a contingency plan for such a situation.
3) All businessmen I know are wondering where the relief package is providing relief. None of them say they have benfitted. They feel it is just feel-good talk with no real impact on the ground
4) Many SSIs have refused to pay their people.
5) Educated and employed people are worried about saving their jobs.
6) Poor working class are not being given the leeway in rent or EMI payments. Many banks do not even know how to give the benefit of moratorium. Landlords keep saying they cant postpone rent because their living expenses come out of the rent.
Good thing is supply of essentials has been maintained very well and prices have not been allowed to skyrocket. Only blackmarketing I have heard of is liquor. There is some hope of relief for them too - liquor shops might be allowed to open with restrictions.
Many of my friends have said that once the lockdown started in China, their prospects started looking up after being hit by a long slowdown after demonetisation and GST. They received quite a few orders at the prices they quoted. And then came the Lockdown 1.0 even before they could execute and fulfill the orders. Now they are in a lurch. China is already back on its feet. In India it is going to be a long battle after the lifting of lockdown trying to satisfy the government conditions and cutting through the redtape.
And people thinking that manufacturing will shift from China to India have not considered China's ability to flood the market and engage in a price war that most of Indian companies cannot win. It is not as easy as listening to Modi advising states to be prepared and then states advising the manufactures. All that will happen is a lot of advice and talk but no action. Government should outline how they will support to meet the price onslaught or how they will cut the redtape. The fact that we are moving towards more restrictions when the need is to have less to attract businesses tells me that it will not be as easy as governments are saying.
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Disposable masks been used widely,...
https://www.amazon.com/Face-Mask-Pack-of-50/dp/B086JBF8F3/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=mask&qid=1588383965&sr=8-1
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