Dipen Agrawal, President of Chamber of Associations of Maharashtra Industry & Trade (CAMIT) has strongly protested the uncertainty being created by administration by speculating the uncalled-for curfew-lockdown.
Dipen Agrawal said that traders are soft target available to administration to thrash and browbeat them. Media reports suggest that administration has identified traders as culprit for spike in positive cases and deaths due to corona virus. It is painful to see that such allegations are made without conducting any study or analysis by experts. NMC administration has claimed that post Unlock-1 cases have increased manifolds in Nagpur because of people mixing in market area, but conveniently ignored other reasons for people getting infected.
Dipen Agrawal suggested that, there is urgent need for conduct scientific study by State government and Corporation to verify whether the spike in positive cases in Nagpur are due to people mixing in market areas or while moving around in city or from persons travelling to other cities. It is important to note that air and rail travellers are checked at airport or railway station while entering Nagpur but travellers by road are scot-free there is no check whatsoever on them.
Recently governance side of Nagpur Municipal Corporation led by Mayor under the garb of inspection organised a morcha to highlight the failure of NMC administration by alleging violation of protocols by traders. Similarly, on 17/07/2020 NMC Administration issued order increasing fine to be recovered from traders for violation of covid-19 protocols. The media reports suggest that certain officers have been now authorised to collect fines and apart from penalty criminal action will also be initiated against the trader. Traders are questioning 1) as to why only traders are targeted? 2) when after increase fine is Rs.5000, Rs.8000 and Rs.10000 depending on number of times violation is committed, then under what authority the NMC staff collected fine of Rs. 5000 to 25000 during lockdown period? and 3) whether such illegal fine collected has actually been deposited in government exchequer or not? 4) Can Commissioner assure that his present dictate will not increase inspector-raj and corruption? These, questions should be publicly answered by NMC demanded Dipen Agrawal.
Pointing fingers at market for violation of protocol has become the norm for administration but what about buildings where government departments are established? Can they not be the place to breed virus, has administration attempted to collected video clip from there. Why not will file criminal complaint against government departments, including NMC, where covid-19 protocols are flouted on daily basis, added Dipen Agrawal.
Dipen Agrawal also said that there is general feeling among traders that, if NMC administration wants to announce curfew-lock down for 14-15 days then they should not wait till July end, they are free to do it with immediate effect. But they are of view that before curfew-lockdown NMC should assure people of Nagpur that post such lockdown there shall be no positive case in city because it has been proved that only lock down will yield no results. World Health Organisation (WHO) has praised Dharavi model, has NMC studied this model? If not, then they should visit Mumbai and gather information and take some lessons from that experience.
Dipen Agrawal urged to State Government & NMC that before taking final call on 14-15 days curfew-lockdown they should take cognisance to the fact that to collect revenue and to maintaining the going status of state administration, governments have out of turn open sale of liquor (it was last on the list). Quoting statistics in air is not enough to justify imposition of curfew-lockdown. Administration should place in public domain the scientific study report and corresponding statistic regarding spreading of virus from market areas and conduct an inclusive consultation before implementing lockdown. The administration should refrain from such speculative headline news as they promote panic and hoarding buying by citizens and if rush in market areas is the main reason for spike in positive cases then such headline making news is the reason for increasing rush in markets.
Administration should not work in illusion; they should first deploy their energy to set right the basic things before going for such draconian step so as to ensure that the distressed traders will survive this pandemic, informs press release issued by Sanjay K. Agrawal, Vice President (Nagpur), CAMIT.
