Milagrow iMap 10.0 review: A tiny robot that keeps your home spick and span

 The coronavirus pandemic has changed my – just like everyone else’s – perception of cleanliness and hygiene. Since the beginning of the Covid-19 lockdown in March this year, I have been scrubbing and wiping not just my home but also gadgets, clothes, and everything else that I use or come in contact with. However, after the initial zest for cleaning waned, I realized I could do with some help in everyday home cleaning. It was around this time that I learnt about the iMap 10.0 vacuum-cum-mopping machine built by Milagraow, a home-grown robot maker.

The iMap 10.0 is a disc-shaped robot that looks futuristic and intriguing. Though a technology-rich machine, it is easy to use and manage. The robot not only vacuum cleans but also wet-mops the floors. It’s only a part of everyday domestic chores, the cleaning and mopping of floors is one task that consumes a lot of time and effort. With these two handled by the robot, I was at peace that I would finally have the time for other jobs which I had been putting off for a tomorrow that would never come.

Speaking of the iMap 10.0, the robot is a delight to use. It is not a machine for deep or extensive cleaning, which you might like to do yourself once a week. For a good everyday cleaning to keep the home floors free from dirt, dust and particles, the iMap 10.0 has you covered. It is a smart robot that you can operate through voice command, too. Moreover, it supports automation and requires minimal human intervention.

The Milagrow iMap 10.0 features Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) sensor for surface mapping, which allows it to create a virtual map of your home. This sensor helps it to function efficiently without getting affected by the obstructions like tables, shelves, flower vases, etc. The robot roams around the home vacuum cleaning and mopping the floors, one area at a time. Interestingly, when its battery needs a charging in the middle of a cleaning job, the robot automatically moves back to the charging dock, and after charge it resumes the duty from where it had left.

The Milagrow iMap 10.0’s utility is complemented by its smartphone app TuyaSmart, which makes it easy to operate the robot. Through the app, you can automate its operations, check stats, and change settings. The app also allows you to control the robot manually. Moreover, the app has value-added features like ‘Pin n Go’ and ‘Zone’ that let you manually set the cleaning area, in case you want it to clean a particular area and not the entire home.

The robot does its job fairly efficiently. However, it has some fundamental flaws. Its wet-mopping function works well only if the mop is wet. So, you need to manually check and wet the cloth before each mopping. In addition, there is no sensor to detect surfaces and the robot runs wet mop operation even on areas where it should not – like carpets.

The robot does vacuum cleaning and mopping simultaneously and the only way to let it do just the vacuum cleaning is by removing the modular mopping kit from the machine. Surprisingly, the otherwise easy-to-use app has no option to run the vacuum and mopping operations independently of each other. These issues may be minor but affect the robot’s utility by adding an unnecessary layer where human intervention is required.

Verdict

Priced at Rs 89,990, the Milagrow iMap 10.0 is a technology-rich vacuum cleaner with a wet-mopping function that works efficiently to clean your home floors. It is, however, not the solution to automate home cleaning; it does require some human intervention. Consider this one if you need a less intrusive robot for everyday floor-cleaning jobs. Important to note that the robot is no alternative to full-fledged vacuum cleaners and mopping machines. It is meant only for light operations. That said, it works like a charm to remove dust, dirt and other particles from your floors.

For more versatile vacuum cleaning, there are machines like the Dyson V11 Absolute Pro (review) which are cheaper and work better for both everyday and deep-cleaning operations.

Covid-19 Factoid: India's active case tally now falls below 800,000

 

The global count of coronavirus cases is nearing 40 million, of which over 8.8 million are currently active. The global death toll is now over 1 million, with the US having the greatest number of deaths.

In India, the confirmed case count has crossed 7.4 million, of which less than 11 per cent or 795,087 cases are currently active. Recovery rate is over 87.8 per cent, with over 6.52 million people having beaten the infection. The death toll has crossed 110,000.

Here are some insights on the spread of the virus:

India’s active case tally falls below 800,000

India recorded a fall of almost 150,000 active cases in the last 14 days resulting in its active case tally falling below 800,000-mark. India had crossed 1 million active cases on 17th September and since then the nation has been witnessing a surge in its recoveries resulting in a drop in active cases.

India is witnessing a reduction in the gap between recoveries and new cases

India has been recording more daily recoveries than new case additions for the most part of the month. While India is adding less than 70,000 cases each day in the last six days, recoveries have been hovering between 70,000-80,000 cases.

Supply constraints to funding woes: Health start-ups in the age of Covid-19

The coronavirus has emerged as a new adversary for countries, the likes of which has not been seen for decades. The outbreak has triggered a 21-day nationwide lockdown, putting enormous pressure on the Indian economy as it grapples to maintain the supply of essential commodities, and the industry struggles to keep the show going.

The outbreak has created new challenges across sectors, with start-ups, particularly those in the health space, bearing the brunt of the disruption caused by the 21-day lockdown.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus LIVE: Maharashtra has 781 cases, Tamil Nadu 571, India 4,314

Shutdown: A logistical nightmare

Healthcare start-ups, which were building their foundation on the back of the booming market, suddenly found themselves entangled in a logistical nightmare as the government announced the mandatory shutdown to counter the rapidly increasing infection. Vivek Tiwari, Founder, and CEO, Medikabazaar, which delivers essential medical supplies to healthcare facilities, said, “There is a huge gap in demand and timely supply and we are putting up a robust and large scale supply chain infrastructure to address this issue.

More pain ahead for the auto sector? Here's what top brokerages say

The outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and the 21-day national lockdown announced to stem its spread have brought the auto space nearly to a halt. The automakers who were already struggling with a slowing economy -- the GDP growth slowed to nearly 7-year low of 4.7 per cent in Q3FY20 -- and transition to BSVI emission norms have now been hit by a Black Swan event the extent of whose impact is still undefined.

According to an estimate, the country’s automobile sales were down by an average 64 per cent in March. The bleak scenario is reflected in the automakers' stock price, too, which have tumbled in the last two months. The Nifty Auto index has plunged 41.7 per cent since February 3, 2020 as compared to 29.5 per cent fall in the Nifty50 index. Has the recent fall turned some auto stocks into bargain buys or should investors stand on the sidelines for now, here's what the top brokerages say:

Nomura

Disruption in wholesale dispatches due to the COVID-19 lockdown was far higher than our estimate. Bulk of the billing happens towards the latter part of the month, which was adversely affected by the sudden lockdown from 25 March. Apart from this, transition to BS-6 and supply constraints affected volumes, especially for two-wheelers (2W) and medium heavy commercial vehicles (MHCVs). While there have been some concerns regarding suppliers’ working capital, so far most of the OEMs have not changed their payment terms, though there have been news reports of delays in payments. A few OEMs, among them Hero Motocorp (HMCL), have staggered payments to large vendors. Vehicle registration data for March 2020 indicates double-digit year-on-year growth in 2Ws and MHCVs, indicating a large part of older BS-4 inventory has got liquidated. Due to the ongoing countrywide lockdown till 14 April and a possible extension, near-term volumes might remain volatile, in our view.

ICICI Securities

March 2020 was a near washout for the domestic auto industry as volumes crashed across OEMs and segments. The spread of Covid-19 in India along with proactive nationwide lockdown necessitated to combat it resulted in suspension of manufacturing facilities in the latter half of the month, hurting production and dispatches. At the retail level, closure of showrooms took a heavy toll on registrations despite hefty discounting amid what is normally a festive period in some regions. This Black Swan event coincided with the transition to BS-VI emission norms thereby affecting liquidation of BS-IV inventory as well as ramp up of BS-VI production. Wholesale dispatches were down anywhere between 40 per cent and 90 per cent YoY, with OEMs better placed on BS-IV inventory front outperforming relatively.

In the 2-W pack, Bajaj Auto outperformed (2-W volumes down 34.8 per cent) despite a 55.3 per cent fall in domestic sales as exports rose 8.9 per cent YoY. Industry leader Hero MotoCorp’s total volumes for the month were down 42.4 per cent YoY to 3.34 lakh units. Unaffected by BS-VI switchover, the tractor segment remained a relative outlier. Market leader M&M’s total volumes fell 30.9 per cent YoY to 13,613 units while Escorts volumes fell 54.3 per cent YoY to 5,444 units.

Motilal Oswal

The brokerage has a 'Buy' rating on three companies in the auto space: Maruti Suzuki, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Tata Motors. In the case of Maruti Suzuki, the brokerage has the target of Rs 5,900 although it estimates the company's FY21 volumes to decline around 2 per cent YoY (v/s earlier est. 8.5 per cent growth) due to the impact of COVID-19 related slowdown. "We are lowering our (earnings per share) EPS estimates for FY21/FY22 by around 24%/21% respectively to factor in for the impact of coronavirus on demand. The stock trades at 21.4x/15.8x FY21/FY22E earnings. Maintain Buy.", the brokerage said.

Besides, Mahindra & Mahindra is a buy with the target price of Rs 426 while Tata Motors has a target price of Rs 111. The brokerage has lowered EPS estimates for FY21 for the two companies by around 18 per cent and 94 per cent, respectively to factor in for the impact of coronavirus on demand.

Nirmal Bang

The COVID-19 disruption could result in a longer wait for a recovery in auto demand. Along with this, the Indian auto industry is battling with the BS-IV to BS-VI transition. COVID-19 has presented two challenges for the transition: 1) Liquidation of BS-IV inventory and 2) Supply constraints of BS-VI components. The other major impact we see is increase in costs in the form of employee expense even for contract labours as the government has intervened and cautioned companies from cutting salaries and wages. We believe that the industry will take longer to see a revival in demand.

We have upgraded our rating to 'Buy' for Maruti Suzuki (from 'Sell' earlier), Bajaj Auto (from 'Accumulate' earlier) and Balkrishna Industries (from 'Accumulate' earlier). We have upgraded TVS Motor from 'Sell' to 'Accumulate'. We have cut our FY21E earnings for our coverage by 3 per cent - 45 per cent to incorporate COVID-19 related disruption and expectation of a prolonged slowdown. The recent meltdown in these stocks has brought the sector in the value zone for long term investors.

Covid-19 Factoid: Spain's deadliest day, and 3 other important data trends

India’s tally of coronavirus-infected patients is dangerously close to breaching the 1,000 mark. Globally, the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases stands at 615,000, an increase of around 65,000 cases from the previous day. The US became the first country to cross the 100,000 mark, and Italy overtook China in number of cases to become the second-most Covid-19-impacted country.

Here are some metrics that show the present magnitude of the pandemic.

#1. Deadliest day in Spain

The death toll from coronavirus in Spain surged over 5,600 on Saturday after 832 people lost their lives in 24 hours due to coronavirus. Spain has the world's second-highest coronavirus death toll, next only to Italy’s 5,690 fatalities. The number of registered Covid-19 cases in the country also soared past 72,000, witnessing a daily increase of more than 6,500 cases, the highest single day increase among all nations. However, the rate of increase in new cases in Spain is slowing down now.

#2. Closed Covid-19 cases: What has been the outcome rate so far?

Out of 615,000 Covid-19 positive cases, the death toll stands at 28,717, while 135,000 people have recovered. If we look at the timeline data, the recovery rate is sliding, whereas the rate of fatalities is showing an upward trend. The recovery rate is defined as number of recoveries as a percentage of total closed cases (death + recovery). Similarly, the death rate here is the number of fatalities as a percentage of closed cases.

#3. How does Germany stand out in the Covid-19 crisis?

Germany has been witnessing a rapid increase in the number of Covid-19 positive cases. The tally currently stands at 53,340. While Germany now stands at the fifth place, going by the number of registered Covid-19 cases – after following USA, Italy, China and Spain. But Germany fares way better than these four countries when it comes to mortality rate in coronavirus affected people. The death toll currently stands at 399, which translates into a mortality rate of 0.75 per cent (total number of deaths as a percentage of total number of cases). By comparison, Italy has a death rate of over 10 per cent. The US, Spain and China currently have a death rate of 1.6 per cent, 8 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively. Germany’s performance in controlling death due to Covid-19 is becoming more surprising keeping in the mind the demographics of the country with a median age of 47 years.

#4. How are Iran and Indonesia’s crises different for Italy’s?

Talking of demographics, the data so far show that the countries with higher death rates in Covid-19 cases are the ones with their population more on the older side. For instance, the median age of the population in the US and China is in the late 30s. Likewise, Italy and Germany have a median age of over 45 years. On the contrary, Iran is a young country. The median age of its population is around 30 years, but it is still witnessing a high death rate of over 7%. Iran has so far registered 35,408 Covid-19 positive cases and ranks sixth on the list at present.

Similarly, with a death rate of over 8 per cent, Indonesia is behind only Italy. Indonesia has a median age of less than 30 years. So far, the country has registered 1,155 cases of Covid-19 and the deadly virus has already claimed the lives of 102 people in the country.

Indian students in UK ask Modi to rescue them amid coronavirus travel ban

Hundreds of Indian students stranded in the UK have appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to organise a rescue flight amid the ongoing travel ban enforced by India to control the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

A group of at least 380 students from India has started a data chain with their passport details to create a collective voice to lobby the Indian government for action.

Among them is a group of marine engineers from Kerala enrolled at the South Tyneside College in Tyne and Wear in north-east England, who were due to fly back to India after giving their management level exams this week.

"Our exams were supposed to happen on 23rd and 24th of March, but got cancelled on the 23rd after getting the question paper at the exam centre, by which time India's travel ban was in place," said Akhil Dharmaraj, First Engineer with NYK Ship Management who would be promoted to Chief Engineer once he clears his UK exams.

However, he and other mariners in a similar situation have no information about the rescheduling of their exams as they remain in self-isolation in shared apartments and hostels, stepping out only to buy essentials from supermarkets where they are faced with long queues and empty shelves.

They have not been able to access any protective masks, gloves or sanitisers and are worried about contracting the deadly virus while miles away from their loved ones in India.

"I have information directly from Cochin Airport that recently a flight with Indian nationals landed from Sydney. Indians have been evacuated from other countries around the world as well but we are not sure why we have been abandoned and how we can make our voice heard to Prime Minister Modi," said Dharmaraj, who is part of a WhatsApp group of fellow Indian students based in different parts of England and Scotland.

"As we began the list, it just kept growing. Most of us came on short term student visas and are the supporting members of our family back in India," said the 32-year-old, who has a three-year-old daughter back home in Cochin.

The UK Home Office has recently confirmed that any foreign students or professionals on visas that had expired or expiring would be given an extension at least until May 31.

Many of the stranded students, who are from different parts of India, including Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Maharashtra and Uttarakhand, expressed their relief at the visa extension announcement but they remain concerned about the limited resources at their disposal in the face of mounting accommodation and essentials costs.

Besides, many are exposed to greater risk of contracting COVID-19 due to being crammed into packed hostels with shared kitchen and bathroom facilities during the current lockdown imposed in the UK.

"Sir please if you can look into this matter because like me many of my Indian friends who came to UK for studies are stuck," said Margesh Raj from Coventry University in his plea to Prime Minister Modi on Twitter.

These students have also been creating videos to post on social media and appealing through the Indian High Commission in London, which has asked them to register their details.

Indian students' representative groups such as the National Indian Students and Alumni Union UK (NISAU-UK) and the Indian National Students Association (INSA) have also been issuing advisories and providing assistance.

Coronavirus: Europe, US death toll rises as Trump defers New York lockdown

The coronavirus death toll shot past 20,000 in Europe on Saturday with Italy and Spain each reporting more than 800 dead in one day, as US President Donald Trump decided against putting the hard-hit New York region under quarantine.

Up to one-third of the world's population is under lockdown as the virus leaves its devastating imprint on nearly every aspect of society: wiping out millions of jobs, straining healthcare services and weighing heavily on national treasuries for years to come.

Globally, the death toll has stormed past 30,000 and officials in some countries say the worst still lies ahead.

But in the Chinese city of Wuhan where the virus first struck late last year, officials took tentative steps back towards normality, partially reopening it after more than two months of near-total isolation for its 11 million residents.

Trump decided late Saturday against imposing a broad lockdown on New York and its neighbours after a strong pushback from local political leaders and warnings of the panic it could spark.

"A quarantine will not be necessary," Trump tweeted, about eight hours after he stunned the New York metropolitan region -- the epicentre of the US outbreak -- with a proposal to place it under quarantine.

 

ALSO READ: Coronavirus LIVE: PM defends nationwide lockdown as cases rise to 979

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, however, asked residents not to travel except for essential purposes.

Trump's reversal came on the same day the US death toll topped 2,100, more than doubling in just three days. Of the fatalities, more than a quarter were in New York City.

Health officials say they fear New York may follow the deadly path charted by Italy, with health professionals exhausted and hospitals desperately short of protective equipment and ventilators.

"It's abysmal," said Andrew, a psychiatry resident in a New York hospital who spoke on condition his name be changed.

He is now quarantined at home with a likely case of the virus himself.

"There's not enough money, there aren't enough tests, there's not enough personal protective equipment for people who are dealing with this... in the hospital who are getting huge exposure to the virus," he told AFP in an interview punctuated by coughs.

The United States now has the highest number of confirmed COVID-19 infections globally with more than 124,000 cases, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University.

One of the fatalities announced Saturday was that of a Chicago infant who was younger than one year old, marking an extremely rare case of juvenile death in the global pandemic.

 

ALSO READ: Fighting Covid-19: After the long walk, jobless migrants head home by bus

European nations have been harder hit than the US on a per capita basis with over 20,000 deaths -- around half in worst-hit Italy.

Spain, with the world's second-highest toll, added 832 deaths on Saturday for a total of 5,812.

Madrid toughened a nationwide lockdown, halting all non-essential activities, though officials said the epidemic in the country seemed to be nearing a peak.

Russia said it would close its borders on Monday, despite reporting relatively low levels of the virus.

More than 664,000 cases of the novel coronavirus have been officially recorded around the world since the outbreak began late last year, according to the Johns Hopkins tracker.

Variations in testing regimes -- and delays in providing sufficient tests in some countries -- mean the true number is likely far higher.

In France, which has seen close to 2,000 deaths, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe warned the "battle" was just beginning.

The first two weeks in April would be even tougher than the past fortnight, he said.

The British toll passed 1,000 on Saturday while Belgium saw a steep climb in deaths, with 353 recorded on Saturday -- up from 289 the day before.

Elsewhere, Iran announced 139 more deaths, and India sealed a dozen villages that had been visited by a guru now known to be infected and a possible "super-spreader".

South African police used rubber bullets in Johannesburg to enforce social distancing on a crowd queueing for supplies outside a supermarket during a national lockdown.

In Italy, a cardiologist from Rome who has recovered from COVID-19 recalled his hellish experience.

"The oxygen therapy is painful, looking for the radial artery is difficult. Desperate other patients were crying out, 'Enough, enough'," he told AFP.

Infection rates in Italy are on a downward trend. The head of the national health institute Silvio Brusaferro predicted a peak "in the next few days".

Europe has suffered the brunt of the coronavirus crisis in recent weeks, with millions across the continent on lockdown and the streets of Paris, Rome and Madrid eerily empty.

Other countries across the world were bracing for the virus's full impact.

As even rich countries struggle, aid groups warn the toll could be in the millions in low-income countries and war zones such as Syria and Yemen, where healthcare systems are in tatters.

Govt forms ministerial-level committee to resolve supply-chain issues

The government has formed a ministerial level committee to mitigate supply chain problems as India undergoes one of the longest curfews in history.

Headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah, the committee has been tasked with ensuring unhindered supply of essential items during the lockdown. Seven secretaries from the ministries of consumer affairs, road transport, civil aviation, shipping, textile, health and Chairman of the Railway Board are part of the committee which will meet daily at 11 AM through video conferencing

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24 announced a 21-day lockdown- the most far reaching measure by any government to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

The move, which experts believe is essential, but hastily drawn has thrown the country’s logistics system into disarray as local administrations are confused the over interpretation of the government orders.

“The biggest need is now that all administration work in tandem and implement the orders in unison. Hence the committee has been formed which will collect daily inputs and ensure coordination to solve the issues,” said an official, who is part of the committee.

For instance, according to minutes of the meeting held yesterday, Priyank Bharti, a joint secretary in the road transport ministry raised the issue of truckers facing the shortage of food on their way as all roadside eateries are closed. He also mentioned that local police authorities were stopping goods carriers.

Following that home ministry issued an instruction to all chief secretaries to ensure movement of people associated with transport of essential supplies and precisely classifying them.

Officials who attended the meeting said that North Eastern states had raised the issue that supply of essential commodities including food and medicine had slowed down. “The hurdle was that there weren’t enough freighter jets available to ensure supply as aviation regulator DGCA wasn’t permitting passenger aircraft to be used for cargo transport. This has been sorted as of today as both Air India and private airlines are now being allowed to carry food and medicine supplies,” said a second official who is part of the committee.

On Saturday Air India used both A320 and smaller ATR aircraft to operate 12 flights to ferry medicine and food items to Imphal, Agartala, Bhubaneshwar and Raipur. Similarly private airline IndiGo operated two A320 aircraft carrying supplies.

US aerospace major Boeing has sent a proposal to Spicejet and Air India Express to convert their 737 passenger jets into freighter planes. “We are evaluating the proposal as passenger jets are anyway grounded now,” a SpiceJet executive said.

A senior official at Indian Railways said that following suggestion from the committee yesterday alone, 34648 wagons carried supplies to keep the supply chains functional. Of these, 23682 wagons of sugar, salt, coal and petroleum products were ferried by Indian Railways in 425 rakes to ensure that the supply chains keep functioning. The total number of wagons carrying essential commodities during the past five days thus reached approximately 1,25,000."The priority for the national transporter's focus will be on delivery of essential commodities like rice, wheat, sugar, salt and vegetables. In the last three days, we have already increased the loading of essential commodities.

With the committee too in place, we would ensure that these goods are delivered covering the long distance. To monitor the uninterrupted movement of essential commodities over Indian Railway system, an emergency freight control is working in the Ministry of Railways, said a statement by the Indian Railways.” said a senior Railways official.

Executives of consumer goods companies say that the committee should be flexible enough to change the definition of essential and non-essential commodities.

“We have factories in Maharashtra and Karnataka which produce Sodium Hypochlorite which is used as raw material to manufacture disinfectants. With the lockdown we are unable to manufacture and distribute these chemicals to hospitals or residential complex. This needs to be put in essential commodities,” said an executive of 3M an MNC in health care product. Pawan Kumar Agarwal, secretary of consumer affairs raised the issue in the meeting on Saturday.

“The term essential is generalised. Many such items which weren’t essential under the government act framed have become essential now,” said SP Singh, senior fellow and coordinator, Indian Foundation of Transport Research and Training adding that due to this truckers are now stranded with goods on the highway as factories have been shut.

Tea companies may lose Rs 2000 cr this year due to coronavirus outbreak

Tea plantation companies in the country maybe heading towards a consolidated loss of around Rs 2000 crore this calendar year as all estates have been shut to contain spread of the deadly coronavirus.

While the estates were initially kept open with plantation companies argueing that the risk of infection was extremely low on the estates, the call was taken following the announcement of the 21-day shutdown by the government and various state governments passing orders for lockdown.

All of the 1422 registered tea estates and more than 250,000 micro-small planters have stopped production citing safety precautions for workers, unavailability of transport to ferry finished tea and practically no demand either domestically or from importing countries.

“At the moment it is of utmost importance to stop the spread of coronavirus and estates are thus closed," Arun Kumar Ray, deputy chairman, Tea Board.

Rough estimates from plantation companies have pegged production loss in excess of 100 million kg (mkg) across India which is valued at around Rs 2000 crore. Usually, plantation companies in Assam and West Bengal produce around 15 per cent of the total tea during March-April.

Usually referred to as the tea-pot of India, Assam produces around 50 per cent of the total tea in the country annually, which stood at around 1390 mkg in 2019.

The closure has incidentally affected the prime first flush in the Darjeeling and Dooars region, where teas from this time of the year are sold at a premium, as there aren’t any buyers.

“Even after the estates open, another 10 days will be needed for skiffing to clear overgrown leaves”, Atul Asthana, managing director at the Goodricke Group said.

Plantation companies are of the view that if the estates are shut till mid-April, production would not commence before May. The second flush season, which produces the best quality teas priced extraordinarily high, begins from May.

“However, a lot of preparation is needed to produce the best teas from the second flush. If operations start from May itself, it may be too late to produce the priciest teas”, a planter from Darjeeling said who usually exports luxury teas to Germany and Japan.

Earlier, citing the isolated nature of tea estates, companies had chosen to keep the gardens operational till the state governments ordered for closure.

On the other hand, exporters cited that there is practically no demand from major importing countries as most of them, including Iran, Japan, Germany, UK, USA and others are currently busy grappling the spread of the contagion. It in fact led to the cancellation of Mombasa auctions as well as buyers are unable to travel.

“Hardly any forward contracts have been signed and only goodwill buyers are showing interest. However, the demand is extremely low”, an exporting firm from Kolkata said.

States, UTs step up vigil on international passengers to check virus spread

In a bid to check the spread of coronavirus, many state and Union Territories have intensified monitoring of international passengers who arrived in their jurisdictions over the past two months, officials said on Saturday.

The state and UT administrations have geared up their machinery after Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba, in a letter Friday, told them that more than 15 lakh international travellers have arrived in India since January 18, but there appears to be a gap between the actual monitoring for COVID-19 and the total arrivals.

"We have information that the State and UT administrations have intensified their vigil on people who have arrived from abroad in last two months and whether any of them is developing symptoms of Covid-19," a government official said.

Next few days are crucial and if anyone shows any symptoms, the local authorities will take action to quarantine them or shift to a designated hospital, the official said.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus LIVE: Trump signs CARES Act, India sets up PM-CARES Fund

In his letter to Chief Secretaries of all States and UTs, the Cabinet Secretary said the gap in monitoring of international passengers for Coronavirus may seriously jeopardise the efforts to contain the spread of Covid-19, given that many amongst the persons who have tested positive for so far in India have history of international travel.

"As you are aware, we initiated screening of international incoming passengers at the airports with effect from January 18, 2020. I have been informed that up to March 23, 2020, cumulatively, Bureau Of Immigration has shared details of more than 15 lakh incoming international passengers with the States / UTs for monitoring for Covid-19.

"However, there appears to be a gap between the number of international passengers who need to be monitored by the States / UTs and the actual number of passengers being monitored," Gauba said in his letter.

ALSO READ: NTPC converts its hospitals into Covid-19 units, hands over to state govts

The government has started monitoring of all international passengers who have arrived in India over the last two months in the wake of the Coronavirus outbreak.

Gauba said it is important that all international passengers are put under close surveillance to prevent the spread of the epidemic.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus: Maruti teams up with AgVa to scale up ventilator production

"I understand that Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) has repeatedly emphasised this and requested the States and UTs to take immediate steps in this regard.

"I would, therefore, like to request you to ensure that concerted and sustained action is taken urgently to put such passengers under surveillance immediately as per MoHFW guidelines," he said.

Covid-19: UP gives ration to 7 mn people; sets up 522 community kitchens

Uttar Pradesh has supplied ration to more than 19.4 million public distribution system (PDS) beneficiaries, of which nearly 7.1 million ration card holders have been provided with free food grain even as 55 positive coronavirus patients have so far been identified in the state.

There are approximately 32.3 million PDS ration card holders in the state, UP additional chief secretary Awanish Kumar Awasthi said here today. He said the remaining beneficiaries will be supplied their ration in the coming days.

Meanwhile, nearly 522 community kitchens have been set up with nearly 137,000 food packets distributed on Saturday itself. “The milk production in the state stood at almost 1.6 million litres, while 1.05 million litres were supplied to the people at doorsteps,” he informed.

The state government has ramped up 26,298 mobile vans and manual carts for the doorstep delivery of fruits and vegetables in UP, of which Lucknow alone is being served with 3,280 four-wheelers/carts.

Besides, 8,833 provision stores have deployed 16,509 doorstep delivery personnel for the benefit of the people during the lockdown, Awasthi added.

The state government has urged the social and religious organisations to come forward for operating these community kitchens to provide food to the slum dwellers, destitute and those travelling from their lockdown workplaces to their native villages and towns.

The state has deployed more than 15,000 publicity vans equipped with public address system across the state’s 75 districts to create awareness regarding coronavirus and to contain its spread.

So far, UP Police have registered 4,642 first information reports (FIR) under Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for defying the government orders pertaining to the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897.

More than 14,115 persons had been challaned in these cases. The cops have checked 466,000 vehicles during the lockdown period, of which about 115,000 vehicles were challaned for violating the orders and a fine of over Rs 2 crore recovered from the offenders.

Besides, the government has filed more than 24 FIRs under the Essential Commodities Act (ECA) under the charges of black marketing and hoarding of essential commodities, including food, medicines etc. The state has announced to even slap the stringent National Security Act (NSA) if required.

The state has identified 5,000 isolation and 6,000 quarantine beds in UP for corona patients and suspected cases. “We are planning to ramp up isolation and quarantine beds number to 15,000 and 15,000-20,000 each respectively in the coming days,” UP medical, health and family welfare principal secretary Amit Mohan Prasad said.

The private hospitals and medical colleges have also come forward to offer their facilities for converting into coronavirus hospitals.

“More than 60,000 people had arrived in UP from foreign destinations and they are being monitored. We will keep their track for the next 28 days,” he informed.

Coronavirus: The new fear of flying could change face of global aviation

As the US started witnessing a spike in Coronavirus cases in the beginning of March, the executive vice president of the nation’s third-largest airline, South West, put out a blog post detailing how every inch of its aircrafts' interiors was being disinfected after every flight. The blog had pictures of staff using disinfectant-soaked wipes and rubbing everything from toilets, luggage bins, overhead lights and pilot control panels. A lady responded to the post saying “My daughter is on a late flight from Baltimore to Denver. She is sitting next to a woman reading a magazine in Mandarin and is coughing and blowing her nose. Would South West Airlines have screened the woman before boarding the plane? The woman is sitting in the middle seat. My daughter is freaking out, as is her mother.”

This in many ways exemplifies the new fear of flying. And this fear could well change the face of global aviation in the times to come. “The current situation will have a long tail of consequences on the future of the aviation sector and global travel, but many of those impacts will be on traveller behaviour, airport screening, regulation, insurance, passenger safety and well-being, and then the ongoing viability of airlines and operators in the sector. While people ordinarily have short memories, the scale of this global pandemic means that it will be on people’s minds for the next decade, especially adults and the elderly,” said Mathew Griffin, CEO of London-based 311 Institute, a futurist think-tank.

Traveller behaviour and attitude towards flying could change radically because an average flyer realises that despite boarding a sanitised aircraft, the risk of being infected with a deadly virus in a pressurised cabin 35,000 feet in the sky is undeniable. When the H1N1 epidemic was spreading fast in 2009, the World Health Organisation (WHO) issued guidelines under which people seated up to two rows ahead and two rows behind, in addition to the same row as the infected traveller, were at risk of contracting the virus. After landing, the location details of these passengers were to be taken and their health and social contacts monitored over the next few days. In a narrow-body aircraft with six seats in a row, that would mean an infected person would have potentially infected 29 other people during the flight.

In 2018, a group of researchers from Atlanta based Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University published a study which stated that infections were restricted to within one metre of the infected passenger but could be more, depending on the seating position and movement of passengers in the aircraft during the flight. The researchers had undertaken five round-trip flights during the influenza season in 2012-13 from Atlanta to various destinations in the US, taking air samples, potential fomite samples and swabs from toilets doors and seats before running them through a software-enabled simulation. The researchers found that an infected person sitting on a window seat was likely to infect the least number of people. The one occupying the aisle seat was the biggest risk to others. Passengers seated in the middle of the plane had contacts with more people. The duration of contact with other passengers was probably higher for those seated in front of the plane. If the infected passenger was seated on the aisle seat, 11 passengers around her had the highest chance of being infected. This included the infected passenger’s own row, one row in front of and behind her in addition to three aisle passengers sitting laterally to her. In case a member of the cabin crew, especially a flight attendant was infected, the potential of infections was limitless.

The Coronavirus outbreak could well change the way aircraft interiors, especially seat pitches are determined to incorporate the ‘one-metre’ principle to restore confidence in people to fly. “Cabin configurations aren’t generic. Every airline has its own requirements and manufacturers design interiors around that. There can be cabin configurations or flatbeds in business class, sleeping pods or thinner seats or thicker back sides in economy class” said an official of a global aircraft manufacturer. In many ways, re-designing aircraft interiors to give passengers a perception of not being packed like a tin of sardines with an infected person in their midst could be financially challenging if not suicidal for many airlines.

Take the case of India’s domestic airlines. Two of them, Indigo and Vistara operate similar Airbus A320Neo aircraft which can seat around180 passengers. While Indigo is a low-cost airline, Vistara offers multiple classes of travel including business class. In the economy class, both airlines have a seat pitch of 30 inches (or 0.76 metres) between two rows. Indigo squeezes 186 passengers on the same aircraft on which Vistara seats 164 passengers. If distance of one metre were to be maintained between two rows, the seat pitch would have to be enhanced to 40 inches. Vistara currently maintains a distance of 40 inches (or one metre) for its business class passengers. There are eight business class seats in the airline. If airlines were to so, the existing business class configuration could be the new economy class. By increasing the distance between seats to Vistara’s business class configuration of 40 inches, the number of persons with the highest probability of being infected would be reduced from 11 to three passengers. In effect, this would put only the passengers sitting in the same row as the infected person and the one sitting on the aisle seat lateral to him in the firing line.

While this could reduce infections and possibly save lives, airlines would have to significantly reduce the number of seats in existing narrow bodied aircraft operated. The seating area of the aircraft is typically around 32 metres in length. Low cost airlines would have to reduce number of rows and thereby seats by almost a third. Indigo’s A 320Neo that seats 186 passengers with a seat pitch of Vistara’s business class would effectively seat a little over 60 passengers to reduce the possibility of infection from 11 to three passengers. To substantially reduce the risk of onboard contamination, airlines would have to also have to maintain a distance between passengers on the same row. A typical narrow bodied jet aircraft width is 3.7 metres. That would mean eliminating the six seats a row concept to three separate seats, a metre apart, in a row. Airlines would have to increase ticket prices manifold to compensate for the reduction in seats despite significant savings on fuel consumption due to lower aircraft weight.

While re-designing aircraft interiors to re-instil confidence in flyers in the face of the deadly pandemic might cost airlines billions of dollars, some have used this opportunity to reassure passengers that their cabins are equipped to battle contagious diseases. Vistara has sent a correspondence to its customers stating that it is taking various measures to fight the spread of Coronavirus aboard its planes.

Vistara stated, “Our fleet is equipped with High Efficiency Particulate Arrestors (HEPA) air re-circulation filters that capture and remove viruses with high efficiency. The air in our aircraft cabin refreshes itself every few minutes. All aircraft undergo extensive cleaning at our base stations during non-operational hours.” There seems to be a general consensus that the possibility of getting infected inside an aircraft are much less than getting infected inside a metro train.

While radical re-designing of aircraft interiors to make them safer in the face of contagious pandemics may not be financially prudent for airlines and aircraft manufacturers, the biggest changes due to the Coronavirus outbreak could be witnessed at airports. The Georgia Tech and Emory University researchers had acknowledged the fact that 40 per cent of infections of an aircraft passenger were taking place outside the WHO’s ‘two row’ zone. They noted that some of these transmissions could have occurred while waiting at the airport, while boarding and de-boarding or from sources and events before or after the flight. Airport security staff who currently test passengers for explosives, arms and narcotics could well deploy more intrusive technologies to exclude a medically suspect passenger.

Griffin said, “Airports will rely more heavily on technology to identify people who are ill. By using combinations of machine vision, biometrics, and artificial intelligence with standard hi definition CCTV systems, microphones, and other hyperspectral sensors, we can already determine people’s characters, personalities and wellness even if they are covered up. We can also evaluate their gait, body temperatures, disease characteristics, mental states (and even diagnose depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, dementia etc), moods, emotions and more. As these sensing systems get even more sensitive, airports will also be able to use laser based systems to identify people, detect their heart health, and even see and analyse the inside of their bodies (in a similar way that we use ultrasound today) using an emerging type of technology called photoacoustics. If they wanted to, they could include sweat sensors into any or all fingerprinting systems which would detect your overall health, what you ate for breakfast, and analyse all your biomarkers for disease information.” In effect future airports would have given a passenger a full health check-up even before they checked in.

Coronavirus LIVE: 2 die in Mumbai and Patna, India under Janta Curfew

A man walks past closed shops in the wake of deadly coronavirus in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh

Coronavirus updates: Roads were empty and public transport and markets closed in India as millions put themselves under a 14-hour long voluntary curfew on Sunday to limit the fast-spreading coronavirus epidemic in the country, where 324 people have so far been found to have contracted the disease.

Meanwhile, a 63-year-old man died in Mumbai on Sunday, taking the death toll in Maharashtra to two. A 38-year-old man died in Bihar due to coronavirus.

Modi in a televised address to the nation last week urged citizens to stay indoors from 7am to 9pm--a move that he said would be a crucial test for a country to assess its abilities to fight the pandemic.

“Let us all be a part of this curfew, which will add tremendous strength to the fight against the COVID-19 menace,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted minutes before the 'Janta Curfew' commenced. “The steps we take now will help in the times to come,’ he said in the tweet.

Coronavirus cases update on Saturday: 800 home quarantined in Aurangabad

Coronavirus cases in India are on the rise. Several new cases are emerging from different parts of the country. Madhya Pradesh is the latest entry in the list of states with infected cases. Meanwhile, some of the states like Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerala, and others are showing a regular increase in the number of cases. Below are the new cases being reported across India on Saturday, March 21.

12 more test positive in Kerala, total cases touch 49

Twelve more fresh cases of coronavirus were reported from Kerala on Saturday, taking the tally to 49, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.

While six more people tested positive from Kasaragod, three each new cases were from Kannur and Ernakulam districts, Vijayan told reporters after a COVID-19 review meeting here.

All those who were diagnosed with the virus today had returned from Dubai recently, Vijayan said.

Three medical students from Wuhan in China, who had tested positive, have been cured and discharged from hospitals earlier.

At least 52,785 people are in home quarantine, while 228 are under observation in isolation wards at various hospitals.

Three new cases in Karnataka

Three new COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Karnataka, taking the total number of infections to 18, the state government said on Saturday.

Earlier in the day, Health Minister B Sriramulu giving details about one positive case said, a 32-year old person from Gauribidanur in Chikkaballapura district, who has returned from Mecca has been confirmed for coronavirus infection.

The person has been admitted in a designated isolated hospital for treatment, he said in a tweet.

Details regarding the other two patients are still awaited.

6 new cases reported in Rajasthan

Six fresh cases of the new coronavirus have surfaced in Rajasthan, taking the total in the state to 23 so far, officials said on Saturday. Reports of 42 suspected cases are awaited, they said. Among the six, five are staff members of a private hospital, where a doctor tested positive for COVID-19, Additional Chief Secretary (Health) Rohit Kumar Singh said.

He said that another positive case is from Jaipur, thus taking the total number of positive cases to 23 in the state. Out of the 23, three patients, including an Italian tourist couple, have recovered.

However, a 69-year-old Italian man, who had recovered from the disease, later died of a heart attack at a private hospital on Thursday night. He was a heart and lungs patient, doctors said.

The district administration of Bhilwara has sealed the borders of the city and implemented prohibitory orders under CrPc section 144 to prevent the spread of the virus.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus wrap: India sees highest cases in a day, SBI's new credit plan

Over 800 under home quarantine in Aurangabad

Over 800 persons have been kept under home quarantine in Maharashtra's Aurangabad district, amid the coronavirus outbreak, a senior official said on Saturday. A major chunk of these are students of a local college, where one of the lecturers tested positive for Covid-19 last week, she said.

"Although only one positive case of coronavirus was recorded in Aurangabad, the number of people quarantined has exceeded 800," Aurangabad Municipal Corporation Health Officer Dr Neeta Padalkar.

As many as 849 people have been put on 14-day mandatory quarantine till March 19 and of these, 58 are Indians with travel history abroad and 17 are foreign nationals, she added. Maharashtra has recorded at least 52 cases of coronavirus infection so far.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus in numbers: Latest Covid-19 cases and deaths in India and world

Bengal reports third positive case of novel coronavirus

A woman with a recent travel history to Scotland has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, making it the third confirmed case in West Bengal, a state health department official said on Saturday.

The woman, in her early 20s, returned from Scotland on March 16 and was subsequently admitted to the Beliaghata ID Hospital in the city with symptoms of COVID-19, the official said.

The woman is a resident of Habra in North 24 Parganas district. The official, however, could not confirm whether she was on home quarantine as per the protocol after returning from abroad. Before this, two persons with travel history to abroad have been reported positive for the virus in West Bengal.

16-year-old shows COVID-19 symptoms in Gurugram

A 16-year-old boy here is suspected to have coronavirus infection, Union Health Ministry said on Friday. The boy is the resident of Gurugram's Palam Vihar area and is the fifth person of the region who have symptoms of COVID-19.

As a precautionary measure, the boy has been quarantined and his blood samples have been sent to Pune-based National Institute of Virology. He likely got the infection from his sister who was tested positive for COVID-19 few days ago. She is undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Gurugram.

The total number of COVID-19 cases in India has now crossed up to 200, including 32 foreigners, the Union Health Ministry said on Friday.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus: 12 test positive in Kerala; MP joins the list with 4 case

3 more positive cases in Punjab; total six patients in state now

Three more people in Punjab have tested positive for the new coronavirus, taking the total in the state to six, an official said on Saturday.

"Three more people have tested positive in Mohali," Deputy Commissioner Girish Dayalan said. Among the fresh cases is the sister of a 69-year-old Mohali woman who tested positive on Friday, he said.

Another person who tested positive had come in contact with a Chandigarh-based 23-year-old coronavirus patient, Dayalan said.

The other person is a 42-year-old resident who had recently returned from the United Kingdom and was admitted to a government hospital in Sector-16 in Chandigarh, the official said.

The first coronavirus positive patient in Punjab had a travel history to Italy and the second person, who died on Wednesday in Nawanshahr, had returned from Germany via Italy.

Best of BS Opinion: Quarantined lives, journalism in time of corona & more

From three cases three weeks ago, the number of coronavirus cases in India has shot up to 223, underlining the gravity of the situation. There is little point in exulting at the low numbers relative to the developed world; testing in India is inadequate so it is entirely possible that the outbreak is far more widespread than we know. Since India’s healthcare system is rarely up to the task at the best of times, Prime Minister Narendra Modi did the next best thing in his address to the nation, warning citizens that the threat may be far worse than we know, presenting India with unique challenges, as opinion writers point out today. Kanika Datta sums up the views:

The Janata Curfew and the 5 pm applause on Sunday represent Narendra Modi's second attempt at social mobilisation, the first being his appeal to the better-off to give up subsidised cooking gas. This effort harks back to India’s freedom movement but the lessons of coercion from Mao’s China suggests that this could be a double-edged sword, says T N Ninan.

Read it here

Narendra Modi's prime time address did not dwell on how to protect the lives of the poor at a time when the economy is in dire straits. There was no reference either to the insanitary conditions of urban slums and plight of wage earners fleeing to villages, writes Sunil Sethi. Read it here

Coronavirus is the biggest story of our lives, says Shekhar Gupta, and a billion-plus people expect us to be around, recording this for posterity and blowing the whistle to draw attention to injustices and state failures.

Coronavirus spread: Banks' exposure to travel, hospitality sectors at risk

Lenders’ exposure to the travel and hospitality sectors is at risk because of the economic disruption from the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The 65 listed companies in the sector had combined outstanding loans worth around Rs 30,500 crore at the end of September 2019, up 37.2 per cent year-on-year (YoY) compared to the corresponding period a year ago.

The companies had total loan outstanding of around Rs 22,200 crore at the end of September 2018.

Hotels are the biggest borrowers followed by airlines. Hotel chains such as Indian Hotels, Chalet Hotels, Lemon Tree Hotels, and Asian Hotels (North) accounted for around 50 per cent of the combined borrowings of firms that Business Standard analysed. (See the adjoining chart)

Coronavirus spread: Banks' exposure to travel, hospitality sectors at risk

The analysis excluded unlisted large borrowers such as Air India and defunct companies such as Jet Airways, Cox & Kings and Kingfisher Airlines.

Among individual companies, SpiceJet was the most indebted in the industry. The airline had total outstanding debt of around Rs 8,800 crore at the end of September 2019, against Rs 1,217 crore a year ago. It was followed by Coffee Day Enterprises, which had debt worth Rs 6,500 crore at the end of September 2019, up from Rs 4,410 crore a year ago; Indian Hotels (Rs 3,500 crore); and, Mahindra Holidays (Rs 1,770 crore).

Airlines are facing the brunt of the disruption caused by COVID-19 as countries restrict air travel and travelers themselves cancel holiday plans. A prolonged decline in air travel is likely to hit SpiceJet’s finances, given its highly leveraged balance sheet. Its debt of around Rs 8,800 crore at the end of September 2019 was backed by a negative net worth of Rs 461 crore, putting the airline and its lender in a financially vulnerable position.

In comparison, market leader Interglobe Aviation that runs IndiGo had total outstanding debt of around Rs 622 crore at the end of first half of financial year 2019-20 (H1FY20), backed by net worth of around Rs 6,200 crore. This gives it a greater resilience to survive the downturn.

In the hospitality or hotel industry, smaller chains such as Lemon Tree Hotels, Asian Hotels (North), and Asian Hotels (West) look more vulnerable to a downturn than their larger peers such as Indian Hotels, EIH and Chalet Hotels. In the first nine months of FY20 (9MFY20), these smaller hotels chains had much lower interest coverage ratio (ICR) — a measure of the company’s debt servicing ability — than larger and well established chains.

For example, Lemon Tree Hotels, which reported total borrowings of Rs 1,285 crore at the end of September 2019 has ICR of 1.6x compared to 3.3x for Indian Hotels and 6.5x for EIH. Similarly, Asian Hotels (North) reported ICR of 0.6x, which was close to a default, while Asian Hotels (West) had ICR of 1.5x during 9MFY20. A company with ICR below 1.5x is treated by rating agencies as being close to default.

Coffee Day Enterprises could also face financial difficulty. The café chain operator reported total debt of around Rs 6,500 crore at the end of March 2019, backed by net worth of around Rs 2,530 crore. This translated into an uncomfortably high debt to equity ratio of 2.6x at the end of March 2019.

Global airlines need up to $200 billion in emergency aid, says IATA

Up to $200 billion is needed to rescue the world's airlines during the coronavirus crisis, the global aviation association said Thursday, appealing especially to African and Middle Eastern countries to provide emergency assistance.

"Support measures are urgently needed," the International Air Transport Association said in a statement, adding that "on a global basis, IATA estimates that emergency aid of up to $200 billion is required".

Airlines worldwide face an unprecedented existential threat as the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed more than 9,000 people around the world, shuts down global travel.

"Stopping the spread of COVID-19 is the top priority of governments," IATA chief Alexandre de Juniac said in the statement. "But they must be aware that the public health emergency has now become a catastrophe for economies and for aviation," he said, pointing out that "the scale of the current industry crisis is much worse and far more widespread than 9/11, SARS or the 2008 global financial crisis."

"Airlines are fighting for survival," he said, warning that "millions of jobs are at stake." IATA expressed particular concern for the situation in Africa and the Middle East, where many routes have been suspended, and where demand has fallen by as much of 60 percent on the remaining routes.

It pointed out that the air transport industry's economic contribution in Africa alone is estimated at $55.8 billion, supporting 6.2 million jobs and contributing 2.6 percent of the continent's gross domestic product (GDP).

In the Middle East, the contribution stands at $130 billion, some 4.4 percent of GDP, supporting 2.4 million jobs, it said. "Airlines need urgent government action if they are to emerge from this in a fit state to help the world recover, once COVID-19 is beaten," Juniac said.

Carriers across Africa and the Middle East had begun implementing extensive cost-cutting measures to mitigate the financial impact of the pandemic, IATA said, but warned that airlines in the regions on average held enough cash reserves for approximately two months.

"Due to flight bans as well as international and regional travel restrictions, airlines' revenues are plummeting (and) outstripping the scope of even the most drastic cost containment measures," it said. IATA called on governments to provide support in various ways, including through direct financial aid to passenger and cargo carriers, loans and loan guarantees and tax relief.

Covid-19: IndiGo senior staff take salary cuts, 25% pay cut for CEO Dutta

IndiGo CEO Ronojoy Dutta announced on Thursday that the airline was instituting pay cuts for senior employees and he would himself take the highest cut of 25 per cent amid the novel coronavirus pandemic that has hit the aviation industry hard.

"With the precipitous drop in revenues, the very survival of the airline industry is now at stake," Dutta said in his email to employees. "We have to pay careful attention to our cash flow so that we do not run out of cash."

"With a great deal of reluctance and a deep sense of regret, we are therefore instituting pay cuts for all employees, excluding Bands A and B, starting April 1, 2020," the chief executive officer said.

"I am personally taking a 25 per cent pay cut, SVPs (senior vice presidents) and above are taking 20 per cent, VPs (vice presidents) and cockpit crew are taking a 15 per cent pay cut, AVPs (assistant vice presidents), Bands D along with cabin crew will take 10 per cent and Band Cs five per cent," Dutta noted.

The CEO said he knew how hard it was for families to take a cut in "take-home pay".

Desperate apparel exporters seek govt intervention amid coronavirus scare

Low levels of working capital as a result of major cancellations of orders and a fall in export realisations have led to apparel exporters seeking government intervention to battle the coronavirus crisis. The difficult situation has led to Apparel Export Promotion Council Chairman A Sakthivel writing to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman requesting her immediate intervention to maintain the viability of apparel exporters nationwide. The letter, written on Tuesday and reviewed by Business Standard has pointed out that inventory of products have substantially piled up and credit ratings have fallen for companies in the sector.

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Govt plans relief package for domestic airlines ravaged by Covid-19: Report

The Centre is mulling a relief package to save Indias aviation sector which has been ravaged by the outbreak of coronavirus, sources said.

At present, the sector is the worst affected due to the outbreak. Airlines are forced to ground aircraft due to massive rate of cancellations, rebookings and truncated operations.

March has especially been hard on the sector, said an industry watcher citing domestic cancellation rate of 20 per cent.

This quarter had traditionally been considered as the lean season for the sector.

Accordingly, highly placed sources revealed that several meetings on the proposal have already taken place between the Aviation and Finance Ministry.

However, financial details of the move is not known as of now.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus LIVE: Mumbai death takes India Covid-19 toll to 3; 126 infected
Nevertheless, sources indicated that a short term waiver or reduction in landing, parking and housing along with other aeronautical charges are being considered.

On its part, industry representatives have met senior officials of the Civil Aviation Ministry.

Earlier during the month, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri told reporters in New Delhi that government is aware of the situation being faced by the airline sector.

On March 11, airline major IndiGo said that it expects quarterly earnings to be materially impacted due to the outbreak of coronavirus.

It also pointed out that the rupee has also depreciated sharply which will have an adverse impact on its dollar denominated liabilities primarily on account of capitalised operating leases.

Last week, SpiceJet Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Singh said that the sector is under a lot of pressure which is temporary.

Besides, a top Boeing official has said that coronavirus scare has brought down the air traffic in Asia Pacific region by more than 50 per cent.

According to Darren Hulst, Vice President and Global Head of Marketing, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, excluding China, in the rest of the Asia-Pacific market, the number of flights came down by about 50 per cent.

Earlier, global industry body International Air Transport Association (IATS) has estimated the combined revenue loss for airlines in the range of $63-113 billion.