Introduction

Factors affecting the supply of a commodity in general:

1) Price of the commodity- The most important factor determining the supply of a commodity
is its price. The price of a commodity and its supply are directly related. It means, as price
increases, the quantity supplied of the given commodity also rises and vice-versa. This is
because the higher the price of a commodity the higher is the per unit cost of production
given the cost of production remains the same and vice versa.

2) Prices of related commodities- The quantity supplied of a commodity also depends on

the prices of related commodities. If the price of a commodity remains the same but the
price of related commodities increase then they will become more profitable in comparison
to the given commodity. As a result, the firm shifts its limited resources from production of
the given commodity to production of the related commodities.
3) Cost of factors of production- The cost of the factors of production affects the price of the
commodity by affecting the cost of production. If the price of a commodity remains the
same then an increase in the cost of production will cause a decrease in the supply of the
commodity because of the reduction in profit margin. Conversely if the cost of production
decreases, then the quantity supplied of the commodity will increase because of the
increase in the profit margin.
4) State of Technology- Technological changes influence the supply of a commodity.
Advanced and improved technology reduces the cost of production, which raises the profit
margin. This causes the seller to increase the supply of that particular commodity.
However, usage of out-dated technology will increase the cost of production and thereby
lead to a decrease in the supply of the commodity.
5)  Producer’s Expectations about the Future Price- Producer’s expectations about the
future price of a commodity also affects its supply. If a producer expects the price of a
commodity to rise in the future, he will withhold his stock at present and so there will be
less supply now. On the other hand, if the producer expects the price of the commodity to
fall in the future, he will increase its supply in the current period.

Occurrence of the disease and the causes behind its global spread:

Coronaviruses are common in certain species of animals, such as cattle and camels. Although
the transmission of coronaviruses from animals to humans is rare, this new strain likely came
from bats or pangolins as some studies suggest. However, it remains unclear exactly how the
virus first spread to humans. Some reports trace the earliest cases back to a seafood and animal
market in Wuhan. It may have been from here that SARS-CoV-2 started to spread to humans.
 SARS-CoV-2 spreads from person to person through close communities. When people
with COVID-19 breathe out or cough, they expel tiny droplets that contain the virus. These
droplets can enter the mouth or nose of someone without the virus, causing an infection to occur.
The most common way that this illness spreads is through close contact with someone who has
the infection. Close contact is within around 6 feet. The disease is most contagious when a
person’s symptoms are at their peak. However, it is possible for someone without symptoms to
spread the virus. Droplets containing the virus can also land on nearby surfaces or objects. Other
people can pick up the virus by touching these surfaces or objects. Infection is likely if the person
then touches their nose, eyes, or mouth.

The main reasons behind the global spread of coronavirus are:

1) GLOBAL TRAVEL
Air travel makes it possible for someone to travel halfway across the globe in less time than it
takes for many diseases to incubate, making it extremely difficult to prevent their spread. In 1990,
1 billion people travelled by air, a number that more than quadrupled to 4.2 billion by 2018.
Without this extraordinary global mobility, the new coronavirus may have stayed in China and
neighbouring countries, or at least not spread so quickly. Instead, the millions of flights that take-
off each month helped fuel the spread of the coronavirus to most of the world within a few
months.
2) HEALTH WORKER SHORTAGES
A World Health Organisation report on nurses showed that the constant migration of nurses from
low- and middle-income countries to high-income countries has left many nations in Africa, Asia
and Latin America with too few nurses and other health workers to adequately care for their
populations. These are also the regions where epidemic diseases, with the potential to become
pandemics, are most likely to originate. Without nurses and other key workers, health systems will
be vulnerable to the increasing threat of disease outbreaks.
3) URBANISATION
The world is transitioning to being more urban. Many of the cities with growing numbers of people
struggle with infrastructure, housing, sanitation, transport and health care facilities. This had led to
an increase in the number of people living in overcrowded and unhygienic environments in which
infectious diseases can thrive, without proper healthcare system.

Starting from less than 100 tests per day, on 18th May India reached a 2,00,000 test landmark in its fight against
COVID-19Asimov Robotics, a start-up based in Kerala, has deployed robots at entrances to office buildings and
other public places to dispense hand sanitiser and deliver public places to dispense hand sanitiser and deliver public
health messages about the virus.In early April, the Indian government launched a COVID-19 tracking app
called Aarogya Setu which uses GPS and Bluetooth to inform people when they are at risk of exposure to COVID-
19. The app was launched before a similar initiative from tech giants Google and Apple got off the ground.the recent
oxygen shortage also caused different groups to join the government in its efforts. Ngo’s like The Hemkunt
Foundation, sewa International, Petroleum and Explosive Safety Organization, Indian Red Cross and Funding.
Remote working technologies to support social distancing and maintain business
continuity

As pandemics or other calamities keep threatening the business world, working from home
ensures business continuity as well as facilitates social distancing. In such a scenario,
technologies that enable secure access to data, enterprise applications, virtual meetings, cloud
conferencing, and virtual/mixed/augmented reality are the forefront leaders to ensure deliverables
are not impacted. Remote working is a blessing that comes due to technology and is of one the
greatest solution that helps us in social distancing. The Technology Development Board (TDB), a body
under the Department of Science & Technology, has invited proposal from Indian companies to address
protection and home-based respiratory intervention for Covid-19 patients, DST Secretary Ashutosh
Sharma said on Sunday.

The proposal may include technologically innovative solutions like low-cost masks, cost-effective
scanning devices, technologies for sanitisation of large areas as well as for contactless entry, rapid
diagnostic kits and oxygenators, and ventilators.