Though the industry has been demanding that trading hours of shops selling essential items be curtailed, the district administration’s announcement of a 17-hour curfew has not gone down well with its stakeholders, who want a complete lockdown.
On Friday, the district administration had announced a 17-hour curfew in Ludhiana starting May 10 (Monday), under which all shops will be allowed to stay open from 5am to noon.
Industrialists say lockdown in other states of the country had affected their output and while payments were stuck, stocks were piling up even as labour was leaving in hoards.
In his latest orders, deputy commissioner Varinder Kumar Sharma had said all industries will continue to function and labour and employers will get curfew passes. Barring a few sectors such as chemists, emergency medical facilities and milk vendors, all shops, including those selling essential items, will remain open till noon, after which curfew will be imposed.
Chamber Of Commercial And Industrial Undertakings (CICU) general secretary Pankaj Sharma said the government was turning a blind eye to the large number of labourers leaving the district on a daily basis in private buses, which were choked.
“If the government wants factories to run, they should encourage the labour to stay back. How will we run our units if labour continues to leave? There should be complete lockdown for at least one week,” Sharma said, adding that a partial lockdown will not reap any benefits as the restricted timings will lead to panic buying, especially when it will be close to noon. “Everyone will rush to shops between 10am and noon. Who will open their shops at 5am?” asked Sharma.
{{/usCountry}}“If the government wants factories to run, they should encourage the labour to stay back. How will we run our units if labour continues to leave? There should be complete lockdown for at least one week,” Sharma said, adding that a partial lockdown will not reap any benefits as the restricted timings will lead to panic buying, especially when it will be close to noon. “Everyone will rush to shops between 10am and noon. Who will open their shops at 5am?” asked Sharma.
{{/usCountry}}United Cycle Parts Manufacturers Association (UCPMA) president DS Chawla said the small and medium scale industry was unable to generate financial resources as at least 15 states, which the industry caters to, are under lockdown.
“A number of industrialists have died of Covid recently. The government should impose complete lockdown. I appeal every industry to take care of their employees. The labour is our asset,” he said.
As per Badish Jindal, chairperson of the Federation of Punjab Small Industries Association, there is bound to be unprecedented rush during the relaxed hours, which will accelerate the spread. “We have requested the chief minister to impose complete lockdown for the industry as we no longer have any markets amid the lockdown in other states,” he said.