Best of BS Opinion: Basic minimum income to farmers, lockdown 4.0, and more

The Indian economy expanded by 4.2 per cent in the financial year 2019-20, an 11-year low. According to the official data released on Friday, the economy grew by 3.1 per cent in the January-March quarter. The number will be a lot worse for the current quarter as is being reflected by high-frequency indicators. The eight infrastructure sectors, for instance, contracted by 38.1 per cent in April. A sustainable recovery, to a large extent, will depend on policy interventions. Here is a summary of Business Standard opinion pieces for the day.

It is far from certain that a medical crisis can be likened to, say, a foreign exchange crisis that allows an overhaul of economic policies. Still, if the idea is to reform, let it be real reform that delivers positive results, writes T N Ninan

The biggest contradiction of the coronavirus contagion is that it is both leveller and divider. As an affliction, it brooks no difference between divisions of region, class, rich, or poor. And yet it drives the wedge deeper between those with the wherewithal to ride it out and those on the margins unable to withstand its assault, writes Sunil Sethi

The Chinese are far from inscrutable and India shouldn’t be surprised by Ladakh. It should’ve been anticipated when the status of Jammu & Kashmir was changed, notes Shekhar Gupta

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“Our outlook on the operating environment for India's banks is 'negative' due to the uncertainty surrounding the duration and severity of the impact of the pandemic which will ultimately affect asset quality and earnings.”

Fitch Ratings