Even as the economy splutters back to life, fears dominate the gains. When recent reports of reverse migration of skilled workers heading back to Mumbai or Surat from UP & Bihar gained ground, SMEs saw a glimmer of hope. Only a couple of days ago, there was a news report that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was considering a stimulus package for the badly stressed hospitality and tourism industry, it seemed like the government becomes sensitive to their needs. However, with no cash subsidies flowing in, SMEs are struggling to find their feet. Job losses, pay cuts, and depleting demand are the order of the day. Moreover, with Mumbai, Chennai & Delhi seeing an unprecedented hike in COVID 19 cases, there is uncertainty everywhere. But life and business need to go on whatever the ground realities may reflect.
The struggle to survive and reinvent ourselves are the dominant thoughts that will help the SME sector to revive. For instance, in one of our articles on this issue, we talk about the concept of WFH which has had a huge impact on our lives. Imagine if the reports of companies like TCS, Wipro, other large outfits start looking at WFH seriously and decide that 33-50% of their employees will WFH. Can you imagine the impact it will have on employees and citizens? Will they miss human interaction, personal one-on-chats, taking a coffee break, or attending team meetings become a thing of the past? No one can really say what the future foretells in this lockdown era.