Any clarifications to why that happened by management seems a facade at this point, no human decency left, people are being treated like numbers. As a result of this no faith in management left by the ones who are still in the org.
How to handle this, given the job market conditions have not been friendly? Any suggestions or advice are welcome & will help.
Try to treat this period as a period of opportunity rather than distress. Rather than being layed off now, you're being paid to make yourself more employable! Brush up on your job and interview skills, see who is hiring and what skills they are looking for, perhaps go for a few practice interviews.
BTW - you'll never do well in a job "doing everything that is asked of you" - you need to do better, to surpass expectations and show potential. Good luck