When The Hindu contacted, CII Vizag zone chairman J. Srinivasa Raju favoured graded relaxation while enforcing lockdown as everyone had to reorient priorities following COVID-19 crisis. Visakhapatnam Stevedores’ Association president K. Krishna Kumar said the port which handled 72.72 million tonne during 2019-20 occupying third position among major ports, had suffered a lot during the first phase of lockdown. He said the vital players in supply chain management should be classified as exempted from lockdown with some conditions. Visakha Autonagar Small-Scale Industries Welfare Association president A.K. Balaji said as they were the major employment generators, they should be allowed to revive their operations in phases during the second phase of lockdown.

Source: The Hindu April 14, 2020 17:43 UTC