An across-the-board sell-off enveloped markets in the last hour of trade as an unwavering rise in Covid-19 cases and slower-than-expected pace of vaccination worried investors on Dalal Street. Besides, confidence in the markets took a hit after media reports suggested that banks have approached the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to grant a 3-month moratorium period courtesy slowdown in the economic activity. After starting gap-up and staying range-bound for the better part of the day, the 30-share Sensex index succumbed to bear hammering and dropped approximately 850 points from day's high to touch a low of 48,149. The index then mildly recovered to settle the day at 48,254 levels, down 465 points or 0.95 per cent.