Three-fourth of the 710 chief executive officers (CEOs) expressed that partial lockdown measures would adversely impact the movement of goods and labourers, which would significantly affect the industrial output, a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) CEOs poll said on Sunday.
“Protecting livelihoods along with lives is essential and the industry is keen to work with the government on universal coverage (18 years and above) of the vaccination programme and in implementing strict health and safety protocols,” said CII president-designate TV Narendran.
Narendran lauded the government and said that it handled both lives and livelihoods effectively during the first wave. “It could do so again by keeping industrial activities out of the ambit of partial lockdowns aimed at restricting social gatherings. This will help India recover from the economic contraction and stabilize the upward growth trends being currently witnessed in several sectors,” he added.
As per the survey, stringent implementation of health and safety norms is better than partial lockdowns on any industrial operations. The poll covered CEOs from both manufacturing and services sectors. About 68% of the respondents belonged to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
While 96% of the CEOs said the industry is well prepared for stricter health and safety protocols, 93% of them preferred “stringent implementation of safety norms” over partial lockdowns.
{{/usCountry}}While 96% of the CEOs said the industry is well prepared for stricter health and safety protocols, 93% of them preferred “stringent implementation of safety norms” over partial lockdowns.
{{/usCountry}}About 60% of the CEOs polled said their production could be affected if there are restrictions on the movement of labourers during partial lockdowns and a majority of them feared up to 50% production loss if restrictions are imposed on the ecosystem that supports the movement of goods.
While 57% of the companies expressed the need to stock raw materials in excess of just-in-time levels to meet any likely shortage of raw materials, about 31% of them said they would accommodate their labour force in the factory in case of movement restrictions due to the night curfew.
More than 60% of the CEOs suggested that the government should allow the movement of workers in all shifts during night curfews and also free movement of goods along with the required personnel to facilitate the movement of goods. “This should be allowed with all workers and industry staff strictly following all health and safety protocols,” the CII statement, quoting the survey, said.
Looking at ways to mitigate the impact of the restrictions, 67% of CEOs expressed their desire to work with the government for mass vaccination of eligible workforce who are age 45 years and above.
The CII is observing ‘Tika Utsav’ from April 11-14 April across the country as announced by PM Modi, it said in a statement. The CII has already activated its 65 state offices and has written to over 9,000 members from the industry to facilitate vaccinations of the eligible workforce.