Shops open but not many turn up

KOCHI: When T K Aboobaker, who owns a textile shop at Kakkanad, opened his shop on Monday after a month, he found that a part of his stock had been damaged by rodents, termites and the humidity inside the closed shop. He spent an entire day cleaning up the entire room, only to see a slow sale. The case was no different for M N Ayyapan who owns a hardware shop at Kakkanad. He was disappointed to find the entire cement packets hardened. “Since construction activities are yet to start, there are not much sales. But, we have to pay our suppliers and they have started calling,” Ayyappan says.

According to the Kerala Vyapari Vyayasayi Ekopana Samiti, which has around 23,000 members from the district, almost 50 per cent of the shops have started functioning from Monday, despite poor sales. This is despite the ambiguity over the types of shops that can be opened and the timing. The guidelines regarding the ambiguous urban-rural divide of the state are adding to the confusion, they say. 

No clarity
The commercial units at Ernakulam Market Road and nearby areas,  a hub of the wholesale textile trade, were closed down by police on Monday. “We are unsure as to why police closed down the wholesale shops, since there is no possibility of people thronging such establishments. The move will also affect small shops in the city which depend on us for supplies,” said one of the wholesalers. 

“Sales at retail outlets of textiles, sanitary, hardware, stationery items are close to zero. Most of us have cleaned our shops and spent the whole day awaiting customers. Ernakulam vegetable market sees footfalls as people go there to purchase essentials. Sales will only pick up once public transport resumes and offices go back to normal,” said K G Venugopal, district president of Ernakulam Merchants Association.

Some shops saw a rush of customers. “The initial rush in certain areas is a short-term outcome that will die down within a week or less. The move to ban the sale of non-essential services through online traders and delivery services too is being welcomed by traders since it is the neighbourhood shops which took it upon themselves to remain open during the lockdown. But, there needs to be more clarity on wholesale shops dealing with clothes and footwear,” said Jaleel Maharaj, district president, Kerala Vyapari Vyavasayi Ekiopana Samiti.

The samiti has decided to approach government seeking extension of the three-month moratorium on statutory compliances to a year, with a reduction on the interest. “A package from the central government to support the traders too should be announced,” Jaleel added.