U'khand businesses have lost Rs 9,000 cr amid lockdown, says IIA President, Uttarakhand

The ongoing nationwide lockdown imposed in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak has had a devastating impact on Uttarakhand's small businesses, whose losses now amount to Rs 9,000 crores, said an Indian Industries Association (IIA) official on Thursday.

Speaking to , Pankaj Gupta, President, IIA, Uttarakhand-chapter, said: "The industries are facing various problems due to the lockdown. In terms of production, we have suffered a loss of Rs 9,000 crores till now. Industries are experiencing losses amounting to around Rs 300 per day, as out of 6,500 MSMEs and large industries, only 2,000 remain open."

He further stated that most of the labour force has gone away, which has added to their problems.

"Our labourers have also gone away, whom we had trained, and we don't know if they would be able to come back. So we have lost our labour and production, and that is why the market is facing huge losses rapidly."

He requested the government to provide six months of relief on loan waivers, fixed charges, electricity duties, etc.

"We are very worried, and we are assuming that it will take us atleast six months to fully recover from the situation. We want to get out of this situation as soon as possible," added Gupta.

The nationwide lockdown has been extended till May 3.

( With inputs from ANI )