Top headlines: PM on lockdown extension, ILO's poverty report, and more

Business Standard brings to you the top headlines of the day

Lockdown will not be lifted in one go, will consult CMs: PM to Opposition

 

Amid growing demand from state governments to extend the nationwide lockdown, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told floor leaders from opposition parties that the nationwide lockdown will not be lifted in one go on April 14. Read on...

 

Centre to release another Rs 34,000 cr GST compensation to states soon

 

The finance ministry is considering releasing about Rs 34,000 crore to states again as compensation for their revenue loss in the goods and services tax (GST) regime. The fund is likely to be released in a bid to provide further relief to states amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, PTI reported. Read on...

 

Coronavirus: Parts of 15 UP districts to be sealed, govt to ensure supplies

 

Uttar Pradesh will seal parts of 15 districts most affected by the coronavirus from Wednesday midnight till April 15, the state’s top civil servant said today. Read on...

 

Goldman Sachs slashes India's FY21 real GDP growth forecast to 1.6%

 

Goldman Sachs expects the global economy to sink into recession in 2020 and sees the Covid-19 pandemic–hit global gross domestic product (GDP) come in at a negative 1.8 per cent in 2020. The latest forecast is a 5 percentage point (pp) downward revision since early this year and around 3 pp lower than the March 22 forecast. Read on...

Covid-19 crisis may drag 400 mn Indian workers further into poverty: ILO

About 400 million workers in India, working in the informal economy, are at risk of falling deeper into poverty during the Covid-19 pandemic crisis. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) said in a report on Wednesday that the Covid-19 pandemic is affecting 2.7 billion workers globally due to lockdowns. Covid-19 is already affecting tens of millions of informal workers. Read on...

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey pledges $1 bn for coronavirus relief effort

Twitter co-founder and chief executive Jack Dorsey committed $1 billion of his personal fortune to coronavirus relief through his philanthropic fund on Tuesday. Dorsey said in a series of tweets that he would transfer his equity in his digital payments group Square to his limited liability corporation Start Small, contributing around 28 per cent of his overall wealth. Read more...

Maruti Suzuki lowers production by 32% in March as slowdown bites

The country's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India lowered production by 32.05 per cent in March, according to a regulatory filing by the company. The company produced a total of 92,540 units in March as against 136,201 units in the year-ago period, the auto major said. Read on...

Large number of HCQ doses bought by US have come from India: Donald Trump

A sizeable chunk of the 29 million doses of hydroxychloroquine bought by the US to combat the coronavirus pandemic is from India, President Donald Trump said as he praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allowing the sale of the anti-malaria drug to treat the growing number of Covid-19 patients in America. Read more...