Paint firms to help community amid Covid impact

NEW DELHI:

Covid-19

continues to wreak havoc across the board, with many parts of the country still under varying degrees of lockdown and control. Onslaught of Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown has acutely affected labour market in India.


During the ongoing pandemic, many paint companies came forward to lend a helping hand to

painters

and contractors through

financial assistance

. As painting activities came to a halt, livelihood of painter community was adversely affected.


Most of them are daily wagers and integral to

business continuity

of the paint business.

Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd. did an

initial fund disbursement

to its painter community falling under the Nerolac Premium Painter Pragati (NPP Pragati) Programme. Over 30,000 painters benefited from Nerolac's initiative. Anuj Jain, Executive Director of the company in a statement has reiterated the support and commitment of the painter community through the years which is facing severe financial stress during Covid-19.

While every sector has been impacted, automobile sector has been one of the hardest hit.

Nippon Paint India (Automotive Refinish business), which is part of Japan's NIPSEA Group, has also done its fair bit. The company, under its CSR program SAHYOG, and donated internally raised funds to over 2,000 workers and painters in the automotive refinish business.

The funds have been generated through N Square Trust that is run and funded by employees of Nippon Paint India - Automotive Refinish business for the welfare of painters and colour matchers associated with the business.

Sharad Malhotra, President, Nippon Paint India - Automotive Refinishes & Wood Coatings said: "The Covid-19 epidemic has dealt a heavy blow to many members of India's economically weaker sections of the society. It is not just our duty but a privilege to be able to help our fellow countrymen. Automotive refinish business, along with the rest of the automobile industry, is going through an unprecedented challenging time and it is our duty to look out for our community members and ensure a safe future for them."

Berger Paints is transferring money directly into the bank account of the contractors who have been associated with the company. They plan to cover over 20,000 contractors across the country.

These efforts by the companies are show of solidarity to members of the industry that continue to face hardship amid economic slowdown during the pandemic outbreak.