‘Landa’ bazaars bear the brunt of COVID-19
Rates of food items have been fixed by ICT Administration. PHOTO: FILE
The second wave of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has badly affected the ‘landa’ bazaars in the federal capital due to fear of contracting the disease from secondhand winter wear.
‘Landa’ bazaars are considered as a blessing for low-income households as many citizens look to purchase used clothes as a result of decreasing purchasing power.
These bazaars offer secondhand imported clothes such as woolen sweaters, blankets, coats and jackets to children, adults and people of old age at cheaper rates while some of the knitwear is also bought by women who use the scrap wool to make other items to sell them locally.
However, with the COVID-19 cases surging with every passing day, people are skeptical of visiting them in fear of spreading the deadly virus.
"It is necessary to clean and sanitise secondhand winter wear before use but most people are least bothered to follow safety guidelines during the pandemic,” a customer commented. He shared that his family has decided to avoid going to 'landa' bazaars this winter due to COVID-19 threats.
He lamented that many shopkeepers are absolutely unaware of basic standards of procedures (SOPs) related to COVID-19 as they displayed used clothes without washing or sanitizing them properly. Another customer, Farhat said, "I go to the ‘landa’ bazaar every winter, but this year coronavirus has compelled me to purchase fresh winter stuff.” Haseeb, a vendor at the bazaar, said that their sales had decreased as compared to previous years because customers have stayed away amid the pandemic.
“The recent rise in COVID-19 cases and other factors such as unemployment due to the pandemic have decimated our sales,” he complained.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 14th, 2020.