Open border for workers, industry body tells Khattar

Gurgaon: Though the lockdown relaxations have enabled industries in the city to resume work, they continue to incur losses because of the fluctuating rules and the lack of clarity around them. The industry body, Gurgaon Industrial Association (GIA), wrote to the chief minister Sunday to devise a special system for factory owners and workers who reside in Delhi but come to Gurgaon for work.
“We have lost crores of rupees as the industries are shut due to sealing of borders. It was opened for a couple of days after persuading the authorities for quite some time but has been sealed again,” said JN Mangla, president of the association.
Till Thursday, industrial units could function smoothly because of easy movement between Delhi and Gurgaon. But from Friday, when the Delhi-Gurgaon border was ‘sealed’ again by the government, thousands of factory owners and their employees could not cross reach the offices and production units in Gurgaon, making the effects of resumption short-lived.
Mangla also said there is a lack of coordination between the Centre and the state, and while the centre allowed inter-state movement, the state has not. “There is a lack of clarity in the communication between authorities, and industries are bearing the brunt of it,” he said.
Mangla said it may take a long time to eradicate Covid but people have to keep working while maintaining social distancing and following guidelines. "These restrictions can hamper the recovery of industrial units and adversely affect the livelihood of the entrepreneurs and employees,” he said. “We have requested chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar that while imposing restrictions on border, state government may devise special system for the industry owners and staff to commute between Delhi and NCR cities on working days,” he said.