The services Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) fell from 49.3 points to 5.4 points in April, the sharpest contraction since record-keeping began in 2005, as the restrictions brought manufacturing, trade and construction activity to a grinding halt. The lockdown spurred millions of migrant workers to flee India's cities, many of them on foot, as businesses stopped operations in March, dealing a huge blow to manufacturing and to the services sector, which contributes 54 percent of GDP.

Measures imposed to slow the spread of the coronavirus including restrictions on movement and business shutdowns "were the key factors causing output and demand to fall at unprecedented rates," a report from IHS Markit said.

A decline in manufacturing meant that the Composite PMI also plunged to a record low, sliding from 50.6 points in March to 7.2 points last month, the report said.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2020