Traders have threatened to hold protests if the weekend restrictions and odd-even formula imposed in some of the markets in the city are not removed.
A delegation of Chandigarh Beopar Mandal conveyed this to UT adviser Manoj Parida on Thursday.
Beopar Mandal president Anil Vohra said it was unfair to target only traders when the rest of the city remains open, while its chairman Charanjiv Singh revealed that sales had dropped down to nearly 25% for traders of non-essential items. Mandal general secretary Kamaljit Panchhi added that the odd-even restrictions were especially bad for the small traders in some of the congested markets as they didn’t have enough money to make ends meet.
The traders have also reached out to municipal commissioner KK Yadav and BJP president Arun Sood regarding the issue.
The mandal had held a virtual conference with heads of all markets of the city where it was decided that if weekend and odd-even restrictions were not removed, market-wise protests will be started throughout the city this weekend.
Vohra, however, confirmed that the UT adviser was sympathetic to the problems faced by the traders and they were hopeful that the curbs would be revoked at the war room meeting on Friday.
{{/usCountry}}Vohra, however, confirmed that the UT adviser was sympathetic to the problems faced by the traders and they were hopeful that the curbs would be revoked at the war room meeting on Friday.
{{/usCountry}}TRICITY SALON BODY MEETS UT ADVISER
The Tricity Salon Association also met with the UT adviser over the weekend restrictions issue. Veer Kaul of Headmasters Salon in Sector 8-C, who was present in the meeting, said weekends accounted for around 50% of their business and the administration’s decision to close non-essential shops had especially affected salon owners. They also discussed details of ‘Save the Barbers’ campaign that the association has started with the Rotary Club of Chandigarh.
AAP FOR ENDING ODD-EVEN SYSTEM
The city unit of Aam Admi Party (AAP) has demanded relaxation in the weekend lockdown, besides the withdrawal of odd-even system for shops in congested markets.
An APP delegation led by its convenor Prem Garg, along with organising secretary Vikram Pundir, met UT adviser Manoj Parida on Thursday and submitted a memorandum for not labelling a locality or area as containment zone where one or two persons test positive for Covid-19. “Declaration of an area as containment zone results in untold miseries on the residents and their lives get disturbed,” the delegation stated.