Last week, a 54-year-old man committed suicide in the capital after two of his business ventures failed in succession during the COVID-19-induced lockdown.
Just before the pandemic hit, Nirmal Chandran had availed a loan to renovate his light and sound company. With events and festivals cancelled, he was left with no business. Recovering from the unexpected jolt, he had opened a chicken shop in the rural outskirts, which also failed to take off.
For many who have been running small commercial enterprises, the mounting losses and unpaid loans have been a familiar story since last March. The periodic easing and tightening of lockdown restrictions too has brought in a lot of uncertainty for businesses. For the government too, it has been a tight situation, balancing the need to reduce the test positivity rate (TPR) and at the same time ensuring that the economy does not grind to a halt, pushing many to penury.
“As motorcycle repair shops are now allowed to open only thrice in a week, it is hard for us to make enough profits to pay the workers. The work too keeps mounting, as all those who have kept their vehicles idle through the lockdown are bringing it for repair works, all of which we are unable to take up because we cannot finish it unless we can open the shop everyday,” says Renjith, who runs a workshop.
The Kerala Vyapari Vyavasayi Ekopana Samithi has called for a shutdown of shops on Tuesday, demanding permission from the State government to open shops on all days.
“Except the shops for essentials, all other establishments are allowed to function only on three days. This will only create more rush of shoppers, as evident during these days, especially on Fridays. In addition, there are several other types of shops, including those selling home appliances, furniture and other materials, which are not yet allowed to open. But the sale of such items continue in online shopping sites. These issues will be solved only if all shops are allowed to function on all days with the necessary COVID-19 protocols,” says Peringamala Ramachandran, vice-president of the Vyapari Vyavasayi Ekopana Samithi.
He says that quite a few of the traders are deep in debt.
One of the demands put forward by the Samithi to the government is a provision of compensation for the families of traders who have committed suicide. According to Mr.Ramachandran, the Samithi has been providing help at the unit level to traders who have been struggling during the pandemic.
