Kathmandu, June 3
Business community of Birtamod Bazaar in Jhapa
district announced on the same that they would open their shops and business
from this Saturday.
Some of the commodity associations have
also issued statements demanding the government should change the modality of
lockdown else they would open their businesses on their own.
The economic cost of the lockdown is proven
dear from an individual to the economy. While there are estimations that the
economy is going to lose about Rs. 168 billion, household impact of the
coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown executed to save the lives of people is
yet to be assessed.
President of Makwanpur Chamber of Commerce
and Industry Krishna Katuwal said on Wednesday that businesspeople were forced
to open their shops as their means of income was cut due to lockdown.
Senior Vice-President of the Federation of
Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Shekhar Golchha demanded a total
opening of business and industries across the country. “The virus is to remain
with us and we have to found a way to live with it. The lockdown has turned
into an economic disaster,” he said.
According to him, the industries are ready
to operate with the provision of physical distancing and necessary health
measures and materials.
However, Immediate Past President of the
Confederation of Nepalese Industries Hari Bhakta Sharma recommended to have a
sound COVID-19 testing facility across the country. “The better health
infrastructure, especially laboratories to test the virus will be instrumental
in relaxing the lockdown. It will support the entrepreneurs to run their
business without much fear,” he said.
He said since many industries do not have
facility to keep their workers inside the factory, there should be measures to
keep the workers in their homes with regular health services and emergency
testing facility. Sharma is a health entrepreneur and runs Deurali Janta
Pharmaceuticals.
“A sound tracking system and scientific
quarantine camps will certainly help in easing the lockdown and subsequently
help people in coming out of the fear of the pandemic,” he said.
But, immediate solution of the problem is
not visible as the number of infected people is increasing every day.
The High Level Coordination Committee for
Prevention and Control of COVID-19 is working to change lockdown modalities by
identifying and marking the areas as high-risk and low-risk zones.
Assessment is underway in terms of easing
the lockdown restriction while maintaining measures to control the spread of
the pandemic. The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies (MoICS) said that
there were sufficient discussions about the move.
“We are assessing the situation and working
on the modalities to ease the lockdown. Multiple ministries are working in it,”
said Dr. Baikuntha Aryal, Secretary of the MoICS.
However, the Ministry of Health and
Population is busy with the emergency response plan and managing the returnee
migrant workers. “There is no formal discussion about relaxing the lockdown in
the ministry,” said Dr. Sameer Kumar Adhikari, Deputy Spokesperson at the MoHP.
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