Distribution of essential goods in containment zones of Gautam Buddha Nagar and Ghaziabad that were sealed on Thursday improved on the second day but gaps remained, particularly in slums and rural areas. While residents of high-rise societies got security guards to collect vegetables and milk, residents of slums and rural areas kept waiting for the supplies to reach them.
Abhay Kumar, a resident of a slum in Noida Sector 8, said he did not approach the police out of fear. “There is no milk to feed the children and the ration shop has not opened for some time. I came to know that the vegetable vendor had come in the morning but I am afraid of venturing out,” said Mr. Kumar, who is from Sitamarhi in Bihar and works in a factory in the area.
Mohd. Salman, a vegetable vendor appointed by the district administration for Sectors 5, 8 and 62, said he sent two trucks to the slum areas in Sectors 5 and 8.
‘Fear of getting infected’
“There was hardly any sale as the police did not allow people to come out and my workers refused to go inside. They feared getting infected. In Sector 62 housing society, things went about smoothly,” he added.
In the official list of sector magistrates appointed for Sectors 5 and 8, the phone numbers of two are not mentioned and the third could not be reached despite repeated attempts.
The sector magistrates are still coming to terms with their new duties. One of them was unable to tell the number of COVID 19 patients in the village under his charge. “We are used to election duty,” he said, while requesting anonymity.
“A person from a family that work as sweepers died in the area. I called up senior officials to arrange for an ambulance. We sent four people with the body,” he added, underlining his achievement of the day.
Another one said that he was in enforcement during the day and is now being asked to serve as a magistrate in Greater Noida: “It will become a 24-hour job but we have to do it.”
In Masuri, Ghaziabad, a resident of a containment zone said there was no door-to-door delivery. “The vegetables are at least ₹10 more than market price. If we still have to queue, what is the difference between lockdown and sealing?,” he said, adding: “This is a rural area where we can share with each other. For many, it is beneath their dignity to line up for ration. We will survive somehow.”
Superintendent of Police (Rural) Neeraj Jadaun admitted that door-to-door delivery in an area like Masuri was not practically possible.
“According to the 2011 census, it has a population of around 25,000. It must have doubled by now. What we have done is passed on numbers of vendors to the residents so if they need milk or vegetables they can call them. We usually get calls for animal fodder and permission to go into fields, which we consider on a case-by-case basis.”
