68% of 40,000 firms may cut pay, freeze hiring or lay off staff: Crisil MD

In a Q&A, Ashu Suyash of Crisil says these companies from across 55 sectors have a wage bill of Rs 12 trillion and are at risk if urban demand does not pick up

Even as some high-frequency data raises hopes of partial recovery, Ashu Suyash, MD & CEO, Crisil says with afflictions continuing to rise, economic activity will remain curbed. In an interview with Vishal Chhabria, she says the second quarter would also see on-year contraction before a mild recovery in the second half of this fiscal. Exceprts:

There is much debate on the quantum of contraction in the Indian economy in fiscal 2021, with some estimates suggesting a decline of over 10 per cent. What is your assessment?

We expect gross domestic product (GDP) to contract by at least 5 per cent