Traders in Peshawar oppose closure of businesses at 8pm

PESHAWAR: The trader community has expressed concern over the imposition of new Covid-19 restrictions and asked the government to immediately withdraw these curbs.

The reservations were raised by different delegations of trade bodies and office-bearers of bazaar unions during a meeting with Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) President Sherbaz Bilour at the Chamber’s House here on Tuesday.

The chamber senior vice-president Engr Manzoor Elahi, vice-president Junaid Altaf and leaders of the trader community and others were present. The meeting expressed reservations over the decision to close trade and commercial hubs by 8:00 PM under the new Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SoPs).

The participants said the business community had suffered huge financial losses in the previous lockdowns and struggle was later launched to revive economic and trade activities. They said the new restrictions would multiply the miseries of the community.

The speakers said the businesses could not afford to shut down by 8:00 PM under the prevailing circumstances and urged the government to take back the decision. The meeting expressed fears that if the new SOPs were not relaxed, the small traders would suffer and these curbs would trigger joblessness in wake closure of businesses and trade activities. Sherbaz Bilour said if the government didn’t review the decision, the business community would face financial debts and that would lead to starvation.

He added that businesses needed relief measures from the government in taxes, interest rates, loans and utility charges instead of new restrictions. The SCCI chief called upon the government to take chamber and relevant stakeholders in confidence before the enforcement of policies.

He demanded that a special fiscal relief package should be announced to revive businesses and economic activities instead of closing the running businesses by imposing new restrictions.