On May 31, preliminary Gross domestic product (GDP) data released by the ministry of statistics and planning indicated that the Indian economy had contracted 7.3 per cent in 2020-21. While the GDP data do indicate the extent to which Covid-19 and resultant lockdowns had impacted the economy, they do not portray the extent of the disruption.

       While Covid-19 has exacerbated the rich-poor divide — an Oxfam report highlights that Indian billionaires increased their wealth by 35 per cent during lockdown last year — it has also set the country back in terms of female empowerment. A ...