Industry ready to face Covid-19 third wave

Hyderabad: In the wake of an impending Covid-19 third wave, industry has geared up to manage the situation unlike during the previous Covid waves. The Federation of Telangana Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FTCCI) members say that many companies, particularly manufacturing and retail sectors have learnt lessons from the first and second waves of Covid-19. "The industry was devastated by the first wave of Covid-19 causing huge loss. When it was on the recovery path, second wave came as another strong blow inflicting further damage. Though the healthcare experts feel that the third wave may not be as disastrous as the second wave, the industry is cautious against the possible threat," said FTCCI's newly elected President K Bhasker Reddy.

He spoke to the media on sidelines of the industrial body's 104th Annual General Meeting here on Tuesday. He said, "The federation will be working closely with the government of Telangana in unleashing the economic potential of our State and create skill development programmes generating employment for an all-round growth of the State and making it the most sought after investment destination." The trade activities of MSME and retail sectors were severely affected by the Covid-related restrictions imposed by the government. Bhasker Reddy said, "In spite of the guidelines from the Reserve Bank and the Centre, most of the banks are shying away from giving loans to the MSMEs. Our endevour will be to sensitise the banks and financial institutions to address these anomalies."

The FTCCI president opined that the government's plans to establish 10 food processing zones in the State are not enough. He demanded for setting up more food processing units across the State. Bhasker Reddy and Anil Agarwal were unanimously elected as President and Senior Vice President of FTCCI for 2021-22. Bhasker Reddy served as Managing Committee Member for 15 years, and also chaired various expert committees. He was senior vice president of the federation for 2020-21. Retired IAS officers M Gopal Krishna and Ajay Mishra were honored with FTCCI membership.