Delhi Lockdown Update: Traders’ Body Urges DDMA to Permits Malls & Markets to Reopen Till 10 PM Ahead of Festive Season

Delhi Lockdown Update: Prior to this, traders and businessmen had urged the Delhi government to consider opening markets in wake of the nearing festive season.

New Delhi: The Chamber of Trade and Industry has written to the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) urging them to allow malls and markets to remain open till 10 pm, reported India Today. Prior to this, traders and businessmen had urged the Delhi government to consider opening markets in wake of the nearing festive season.

Meanwhile, Delhi BJP yesterday staged a protest near Kejriwal’s residence, demanding permission for a complete reopening of all weekly markets. The weekly markets were shut during the second wave in Delhi and are yet to be reopened even as other sectors of the economy saw phased resumption last month. The protest was led by Delhi BJP president Adesh Gupta and Leader of Opposition Ramvir Singh Bidhuri who staged a demonstration near Kejriwal’s official residence. However, the protest was called off by the police.

The protestors were of the view that if liquor shops and malls can reopen, then weekly markets should also be permitted as livelihood for lakhs of people depend on it. “There is no law on reopening of liquor stores but weekly bazaars must reopen under a certain law framework,” the Delhi BJP president said.

As per Delhi government orders, only one weekly market in a municipal ward is allowed to open. These markets were closed after Covid cases started rising and lockdown was imposed to check the second wave in April.

Delhi Covid Cases

The national capital recorded 44 fresh COVID-19 cases and five deaths due to the disease on Friday while the positivity rate dipped to 0.06 per cent, according to data shared by the health department here. The coronavirus death toll in the city has risen to 25,065, the latest health bulletin showed.

So far, the city has reported 14,36,623 cases of COVID-19 of which over 14.1 lakh patients have recovered. The number of active cases slightly decreased to 516 on Friday from 518 a day before.