Majority of businesses fear second lockdown

Punjab govt seeks suggestions from businessmen to tackle surging Covid-19

LAHORE:

As the second wave of Covid-19 spreads fast in the most populous parts of the country, the apprehension of another lockdown among various businesses is growing.

Among the businesses that fear the lockdown are retail and services sectors. Meanwhile, the manufacturing sector is not under serious threat of another lockdown as such businesses continued to operate during the first wave of Covid-19.

The Punjab government was previously issuing warnings through the National Command and Control Centre (NCOC) to take precautionary measures, however, a sudden surge in Covid-19 cases has resulted in the closure of some sectors like cinema, theatre and restaurant as well as shrines at the central level, followed by provinces.

Marriage halls are allowed to operate under strict standard operating procedures (SOPs) else their premises will be sealed. “We are operating under extreme scrutiny and there is a broader consensus that we will have to close down our business due to the increasing threat of Covid-19,” said an owner of a Lahore-based marriage hall.

“It is a tough job to ask guests not to cheer up, maintain distance while wearing masks and take other necessary precautionary measures during a marriage ceremony,” he added.

To date, small-scale businesses and other trading activities in the wholesale and retail markets of provincial capital Lahore have been going on normally, however, government ministers and administrative officers have started meeting some groups of traders, seeking their suggestions for handling the ongoing wave of Covid-19.

“We were called by the provincial industries minister, who asked us to follow proper SOPs while doing business in markets,” said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Traders Wing Secretary Information Mian Muhammad Idrees while talking to The Express Tribune.

However, Idrees mentioned that the minister warned traders that the markets which did not follow the SOPs would be sealed.

The district administration of Lahore has already sealed some shops due to violation of Covid-19 SOPs. On the other hand, traders and associations which did not belong to the PTI wing were unaware of any such meeting.

Chainstore Association of Pakistan Chairman Tariq Mehboob lamented that no government official had called retailers so far to discuss a strategy related to Covid-19.

“The second wave of coronavirus will be more dangerous than the previous one due to changing weather conditions; the threat is real but no one seems to be taking it seriously,” remarked Mehboob.

Previously, the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) had been active in dealing with such issues, but it seemed that it was not interested anymore in handling the matter, he lamented. The association chairman was of the view that businesses, especially those which were under the tax net, were still facing supply chain issues.

“Business activities are running at a good pace but the disrupted supply chain has not yet fully recovered and many brands have not been able to tap demand,” he said.

All Pakistan Anjuman-e-Tajraan Secretary-General Naeem Mir stated that Covid-19 was a global threat but in Pakistan it was being exaggerated for political reasons. “I think that the government is trying to build pressure on opposition parties under this threat,” Mir added.

He said the provincial government had not yet called his association for any discussion on the closure of markets and it was only meeting with traders who represented the ruling party. “We are not in favour of market closure,” Mir added.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 12^th, 2020.

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