With rising cases of Covid-19 in the capital city, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) on Friday said it has sought the opinion of its members on whether there is a need to close markets in Delhi to protect customers and traders. It said the final decision in this regard will be taken on Saturday after consultation with Delhi traders as well as with the Central and state governments.
The traders body said its Delhi Chapter has begun an online survey to seek the opinion of Delhi traders on whether markets should be closed in the city to curb the spread of the pandemic. This comes at a time when the Delhi government has stated that the capital city's Covid-19 cases may touch 5.32 lakh-mark by July end.
In a statement, Praveen Khandelwal, Secretary General, CAIT said traders are fearful to operate shops due to rising cases of corona in Delhi and the ratio of corona testing and the absence of beds in hospitals. He said that CAIT is also hoping to have a comprehensive discussion with the Central and State government on this issue. "Our intent is to co-operate with the governments and join the efforts to curb the rise of Covid-19 cases in Delhi," he added.
“Shops are definitely open in Delhi but business is only about 5-10 per cent . In wholesale markets, customers from outside Delhi are not coming, whereas in the retail markets, local customers are not coming at all, due to heightened fear of the pandemic and challenges being faced in getting testing done and obtaining hospital beds,” he added.