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Case against sweet shop owner in Bengali market containment area, residents claim no home deliveries
The upscale neighbourhood made was listed as a containment zone after a surveillance team of New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) on Wednesday found 35 workers of the Bengali Pastry Shop living under unhygienic conditions in a congested space and violating social distancing norms.
A day after the popular Bengali Market in central Delhi was marked as one of the 23 containment zones to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in the city the police on Thursday registered a case against the owner of Bengali Pastry Shop for violating social distancing norms and keeping workers under “unhygienic conditions”.
The upscale neighbourhood made was listed as a containment zone after a surveillance team of New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) on Wednesday found 35 workers of the Bengali Pastry Shop living under unhygienic conditions in a congested space and violating social distancing norms. Two workers, who had flu-like symptoms (common in Covid-19 patients), were shifted to a quarantine centre after being tested at RML Hospital. The test reports are awaited.
The owner of the shop did not respond to calls and text messages from HT seeking a comment.
The NDMC on Thursday sanitised the area and sprayed 6,000 litres of disinfectant.
The area was surveyed on Wednesday after three persons were found positive for the coronavirus disease from the neighbourhood between April 4 and April 6.
Deepak Yadav, additional deputy commissioner of police (New Delhi), said the three people found Covid-19 positive in Bengali Market are the owner of Bangla Sweets in the Gol Market area, his son, and a cook.
There was no response from the owner of Bangla Sweets when HT tried to contact him.
“The first person who was infected with the virus was admitted to Apollo Hospital with fever on April 4. His son also developed symptoms and had to be admitted on April 5. Their cook fell ill the next day (April 6). Both of them tested positive later,” said YK Anand, president, Bengali Market residents’ welfare association.
A senior administration official said the tracing of their contacts is still on, and that they are unsure if any of them have any history of travel to foreign countries.
The surveillance team, which comprised officials of the district administration and those from NDMC, on Wednesday screened 325 houses, two markets and about 2,000 people in the Bengali Market and Mandi House area.
Bengali Market, which was founded in 1930, has now been sealed by the police, who have blocked all entry and exit points to the neighbourhood. According to an order issued by New Delhi district magistrate Tanvi Garg, the adjoining areas of Todarmal Road, Babar Lane, and School Lane have also been blocked.
“An extensive disinfection drive on the sealed containment area of Bengali Market, Babar Road and their adjoining lanes, sub-lanes, residential complexes, parks of the area, was carried out to prevent the spread of the virus,” said S Chellaiah, director (horticulture) at NDMC.
“A case was registered against the shop owner for violating social distancing norms, prohibitory orders and keeping workers under unhygienic conditions amid the coronavirus pandemic. Investigations in the case is going on,” the Delhi Police said in a statement on Thursday.
About 2,000 families live in Bengali Market neighbourhood, which extends from The Lalit hotel on Barakhamba Road to Sangeet Bharti near Mandi House. Within the Bengali Market containment zone, the police have set up double-layer iron barricades at 10 entry and exit points, and at least 100 security personnel have been deployed on the pickets and on patrolling duty in the containment area.
“Nobody is being allowed to enter the containment zone or come out. All emergency services, such as ambulances, have been stationed near pickets. The live footage of the CCTV cameras installed in the neighbourhood is being monitored to keep a check on residents. Those found violating orders will be booked,” additional DCP Yadav said .
Yadav said drones cannot be used for surveillance in Bengali Market containment because the area comes under the “no-fly zone” .
No supply of essentials: Residents
After being declared a containment zone, residents are not allowed to step out of their homes, even to buy essentials. Authorities said these essentials will be delivered to doorsteps of residents when they need them.
Contacted over phone, residents, however, said they had already begun facing problems, with essential food items not being delivered.
Vinod Juneja, a resident of Babar Road, said the police had circulated the contact numbers of 14 vendors authorised to deliver these goods.
“However, all the vendors we call are refusing to come. For example, the vegetable vendor I called said he did not get fresh supply today as his truck was stopped somewhere. The milk vendor said he has no staff to send ,” Juneja said.
District magistrate Garg admitted that there may have been some problems since it was the first day of containment. “We will keep a stricter vigil from tomorrow and ensure that everybody get their essential supplies,” she said.
