Indore slowly gets its heart beat back

Indore: May be very slowly, but return of the hullabaloo at Indore’s haat-bazaars makes it feel like the city is getting its heart beat back. After a complete lockdown of around two months, the famous markets of Siyaganj, Lohamandi and Transport Nagar on Thursday saw some establishments opening shutters and crawling back to business.
The state’s worst-affected city has entered Lockdown 4.0 with residents still not allowed to come out of their homes.But, local administration is gradually issuing permissions to start commercial activities and services.
After starting doorstep delivery of grocery, vegetables, fruits, namkeen, eggs and dressed chicken, administration has given permission to over 2,000 industries, as claimed by MP Shankar Lalwani, to start operations.
Collector Manish Singh on Wednesday granted relaxation to traders, transporters, mechanics, service providers in Transport Nagar, Mechanic Nagar, Lohamandi (old and new) and Siyaganj market to start their business on one strict condition — following social distancing and precautionary measures against Covid-19. Wholesale grocery shops started in Siyaganj while shops of tools and machines were opened in New Siyaganj market. Similarly, mechanics started repairing work of trucks and other vehicles in Mechanic Nagar while transporters started rendering services from Transport Nagar.
These traders were not allowed to entertain customers at shops but to take their order, service requests on phone or online. Collector has also allowed charted accountants and company secretaries to render services but they are not allowed to entertain clients in their offices.
So far, administration has granted permission to traders of fruits, dry fruits, pan masala to supply stocks in other districts while a large number of curfew passes have so far been distributed among employees of different business establishments.Meanwhile, after district administration allowed commercial activities in rural areas in the limited hours, markets in many villages including that in Depalpur have started doing business. Despite collector’s orders, liquor contractors have however denied to open shops there. Assistant excise commissioner Rajnarayana Soni on Thursday issued show-cause notice to Indore Liquor Gallery, which has been allotted licence of all 175 shops of district for 2020-21. “The notice issued under section 8 of MP Excise Act 1915, asking contractors to file a reply of their not opening liquor shops, as ordered by collector, in next seven days” he said.