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In some shops, few items left on shelves
New Delhi:
New Delhi:
The queue in the supermarket’s billing counter took a long serpentine shape as a heated argument between a lean bespectacled man and middle-aged person double his size continued.
The first man had three 5kg-bags of wheat and the other had two cans of cooking oil – other than aluminium foils, kitchen tissues, condoms, family packs of biscuits and a carton of ready-to-eat noodles among other things.
The cause of dispute -- each of them wanting to be billed first.
The lean man lost the fight when the supermarket staff intervened, informing him about a cap on the procurement of essential items as a necessary step towards preventing hoarding and a supply crisis, especially in the light of increased sales that came as a surprise in the last few days.
Supermarkets, department stores, fruits and vegetable marts, and grocery stores across the city continued witnessing large footfall on Friday with panic-stricken people lining up to procure kitchen staples, and whatever they assumed was necessary, fearing a lockdown in the light of a possible spread of the coronavirus disease.
Images on TV and social media of locked enterprises and empty shelves from countries affected by the virus added to their fear.
On Thursday evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing the nation, asked people, not to “hoard” items, assuring the market is stable. But panic purchases continued, maybe less than the previous few days.
“We trust the Prime Minister. There is no doubt. But how is it possible for him to know about kitchen stocks, family size and how much food we consume every month? At this juncture, the government should ensure more supply so that people can store food,” said Jaspal Naagar, a customer at a shop in north-west Delhi’s Pitampura.
Pankaj Gupta, a resident of south Delhi’s Amar Colony, said: “The PM had asked us not to worry during demonetisation too. But did people not face a hard time? He has asked people not to hoard. He is correct. Who is hoarding here? We are just buying essentials in advance. This is nothing but our routine monthly requirement.”
The sudden urge to procure groceries cut across demography – in both affluent and relatively lower-income neighbourhoods, from Vasant Kunj to Pandav Nagar to Deoli.
On Friday, HT visited grocery marts across Delhi and met people who were anxious over a possible lockdown despite assurances from the government. Most stores had imposed caps on the purchase of essential commodities and most customers called it “advance purchases”.
The shopping bills reflected patterns too. Wheat, rice, cooking oil, salt and sugar were the most procured items, followed by hygiene items such as soap, handwash, toilet paper and then ready-to-eat food and packaged food.
Most store managers and people in billing counters said they witness such bulk purchases usually at the first week of any month – soon after people get their salaries. “In the middle of the month, it is just the fear of a lockdown,” said Devraj Baweja, president of the Sadar Bazar traders’ confederation.
“We have seen a surge in the sales of essential commodities such as rice, flour, vegetables, fruits, dal among others in the wake of Covid-19. In the past one week, we witnessed a growth by 60% in the sale of rice, flour, pulses and other essential commodities,” said Arvind Mediratta, chief executive officer of Metro Cash and Carry – a leading wholesaler chain.
He said, “Additionally, there has been a high demand in both personal hygiene and home hygiene categories. Tissue and hygiene products have seen a growth of 20% and floor disinfectants (surface cleaners) by 28%.”
An official in Mother Dairy said milk and dairy products have seen around a 15% increase in demand this week.
Most supermarkets, several store managers explained, have an auto-replacement system (ARS) for essential items, which effectively means the stock is replenished periodically. Under such a structure, a sudden surge in demand can lead to empty shelves. And, empty shelves, even if temporary, can create panic in such circumstances, said a store manager in a popular grocery outlet.
He said, “For instance, we have a three-day ARS for cooking oil. The last batch arrived on Thursday and was over within eight hours. The shelves are temporarily empty now but it does not reflect a crisis in the market.”
A senior official of the Future Group, which owns franchises such as Big Bazaar, said: “The ARS is usually flexible. It is decided on the basis of the intersection of demand and supply. But, under the current situation, the problem was that the market did not get ample time to analyse the sudden change in demand. But there is no problem in the supply chain and any crisis is out of the question.”
BOX
The most sought-after items: Wheat, Rice, Pulses, Cooking Oil, Salt, Sugar, Masala, Ready-to-eat food, Soaps, Hand wash, Toilet paper, Disinfectants
