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On 8 April, representatives of more than 10,000 private hospitals across India got on a call. All office-bearers of the Associations of Healthcare Providers Indian (AHPI), none of them were in a position to pay staff their entire salary for April. With the 21-day lockdown extended for another 20 days till 3 May, and possibly more extensions in the offing, the situation only looks set to worsen.

Hospital earnings have been battered since the Covid-19 pandemic began picking up pace in India. On 22 March, an advisory from the government urged private hospitals to forego all non-emergency procedures.