Early closure of shops economic murder of traders: SCCI

PESHAWAR: Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) has termed the provincial government’s decision to close grocery stores and shops at 4pm as an economic genocide of traders.

The SCCI held a meeting attended by senior vice-president Shahid Hussain, vice-president Abdul Jalil Jan, Anjuman e Tajaran Peshawar Chairman, Shaukat Ali Khan, Ghazanfar Bilour, Riaz Arshad, Mohammad Afzal and Adeel Rauf. The SCCI President Maqsood Anwar Pervaiz said the traders could no longer afford any lockdown, adding that instead of closing the shops earlier, the government should reopen businesses in a phased manner with very strict Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to contain the coronavirus.

He asked the authorities concerned to fix timings for opening of markets and shops in consultation with the trader community to avoid further financial losses to coronavirus-hit traders. Chairing the meeting here at the Chamber’s House on Monday, the SCCI chief said the decision to close shops at 4pm had added to the miseries of the lockdown-hit traders, which is an unjust and unfair step.

He urged the authorities concerned to implement the decisions and policies by making proper consultation with the chamber, traders’ bodies and associations so that any confrontation between local administration and traders is prevented.