Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said that the Delhi government will allow stand-alone shops in residential areas to open following Central government orders but will provide no other relaxation in the lockdown till May 3.
Shops in containment zones, he said, would continue to remain shut. “Markets, complexes, and shopping malls will remain shut. Only stand-alone and neighbourhood shops such as those in residential areas will be allowed to open and those that fall under the containment area will remain closed,” the CM said.
However, out of approximately 75,000 eligible stores, only about 300 may have opened said President of Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), Praveen Khandelwal. Crucially, there was “no established meaning” for stand-alone and neighbourhood shops, Mr. Khandelwal said. Consequently, police personnel who themselves did not know how to identify them were not allowing stores to open. Such complaints were received from market leaders across the city, some of who justified the action as the directives were ambiguous.
Practical difficulties
Suresh Bindal, a garments trader in Chandni Chowk and president of the IPEX group housing society, said that most people who inquired with police about reopening stores were informed that no such order had been received. Besides, Mr. Bindal was of the opinion that shops did not have to be opened up, “from a health stand point.”
“When police personnel are falling sick themselves, what is our standing to be able to function properly?” asked M.R. Bindal, arguing that store owners and traders would not have the capacity to conduct regular temperature checks and ensure safety precautions. He further said that it would be a task to have employees come to work given movement restrictions and issues with the supply chain.
Mr. Khandelwal concurred, stating that while Sunday was only the first day after the order was issued and consequently problems of supply-chain management hadn’t crept up, it would likely be a big challenge. Among other concerns are if the producers and wholesalers of non-essential commodities aren’t allowed to function and the transportation of employees.
The CAIT, meanwhile, wrote to the union Home Secretary, Ajay Bhalla asking for a clarification on the MHA’s order. It stated that there were several interpretations about “neighbourhood shops” by authorities, because of which shops exempted from lockdown could not open.
It also argued that there was a lack of consensus among administration and law enforcing agencies, which was impeding traders. The traders’ body also asked for clarification on the need for movement passes for employees of such stores, and called for the setting up of a friendlier mechanism.
