Alleging that the Delhi government did 'nothing' for traders in the national capital in the past 14 months during the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Delhi Traders Association (NDTA) president Atul Bhargava suggested that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal led government should open markets in "phased manner" in Delhi.
"The markets should be opened in phase manner in Delhi. The office timings should be from 10 am to 4 pm, while the shop opening timings should be from 12 pm to 7 pm. This will not increase the load on public transport," said Bhargava in a statement.
Delhi has been under a lockdown since April 19 in view of a surge in COVID-19 infections, which was extended till May 17.
Bhargava said that government should think about the trades soon or a large number of people in Delhi will lose their business.
"Fourteen months have passed while nothing has been done for the traders by the government. In the current situation, it is difficult to survive for traders. If the situation remains the same then a large number of traders will be closed. The government should soon think about the traders," he added.
With a strict lockdown in place, Delhi reported 6,430 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday. However, the number of fatalities due to coronavirus infection continues to be a matter of worry in the national capital as it reported 337 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to a health bulletin by the Delhi government.
The death toll in Delhi has now reached 21,244, while the cumulative fatality rate is at 1.53 per cent. The positivity rate has come down to 11.32 per cent, which is the lowest since April 12. The total case count in the city stands at 13,87,411, including 66,295 active cases.
The Ministry of Health in its briefing today said Delhi is among states and UTs that has reported a major drop in case positivity.
( With inputs from ANI )
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