While India battles the second wave of COVID-19, the country's capital Delhi has, for the past few days, seen a steady decline in the number of infections. With the reduction of COVID positive cases, markets have started opening up in the neighbouring state of Haryana as well.
Keeping that in mind, traders in Delhi, now, have also started asking for permission to open the market.
The lockdown in Delhi came into effect on April 20 and is in force till May 31. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has indicated to allow markets to open from June 1. Since then, market organizations have begun to set standard operating procedures (SOPs) based on their experience with the previous unlock process.
Groups of business organizations such as Confederation of All India Traders (CAT), and Bhartiya Udyog Vyapar Mandal (BUVM) as well as Kashmiri Gate, Chandni Chowk, Connaught Place, Cloth Market are sending their respective drafts to the government so that the risk of infection is minimized in the event of a market reopening.
However, there is also a standoff between these proposals. Just as BUVM has advocated opening markets and shops on an odd-even basis, CAT has described it as impractical. CAT has sought to set aside time to open the wholesale and retail markets. Similarly, the Automotive Parts Merchant Association (APMA) has proposed to set a few hours (10 am to 5 pm) to open the market. Similarly, there is a demand to restore the metro services.
Here are the proposals