Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani will forego his salary in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic that has gripped the nation and forced a lockdown in the country until May 3.

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In a letter to employees dated April 29, Reliance Industries' executive director Hital R. Meswani stated that Ambani will forego his entire compensation. Additionally, the company’s board of directors, including executive directors, executive committee members and senior leaders will forego 30-50 percent of their compensation.

The letter added that the company’s hydracarbons business has been particularly affected by the turn of events. Consequently, employees in the hydrocarbons business with salaries in excess of Rs 15 lakh per annum will see a 10 percent reduction in their fixed pay.

Those earning less than Rs 15 lakh per annum will see no reduction in compensation.

Moreover, annual cash bonus and performance-linked incentives normally paid in the first quarter stand deferred.

The letter said: “The Hydrocarbons business has been adversely impacted due to reduction in demand for refined products and petrochemicals. This has of course put pressure on our Hydrocarbons business necessitating optimisation and cost reduction across all fronts.

“The situation demands that we maintain razor sharp focus on operating costs and fixed costs and all of us need to contribute to make this happen."

The letter stated that the lockdown has given the company an opportunity to reorganise and digitise its business processes and subsequently improve productivity.

"The lock down period has also provided us with several opportunities to reorganise ourselves and digitize our business processes to generate significant improvements in our productivity, efficiency and costs."

India remains under a lockdown until May 3. The Ministry of Home Affairs on Wednesday said that many districts will see relaxation from the lockdown May 4 onwards.

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First Published:Apr 30, 2020 3:37 PM IST