Traders demand govt allow markets to stay open till midnight

KARACHI: All Karachi Tajir Ittehad Chairman Atiq Mir on Sunday demanded of the Sindh government to allow businesses to stay open until midnight after Iftar from Monday, ARY News reported.

He in a statement said the government should allow markets to remain open after iftar till Chand Raat. Traders will open their shops under standard operating procedures (SOPs) after Iftar even if they are not granted permission, he announced.

He further demanded that the city administration de-seal markets sealed over violation of the SOPs.

Meanwhile, Leader of Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industries (KCCI) Qasim Siraj Teli urged the government to ease lockdown restrictions for a week from Monday until Saturday.

He said coronavirus has become part of life and will not go away, adding traders cannot keep their businesses shut forever. He stressed the need for working out ways and means to allow businesses to operate amid the pandemic.

It is noteworthy that the Punjab government has allowed shopping malls to be reopened from Monday.

Punjab Industries and Commerce Minister Mian Muhammad Aslam Iqbal said shopkeepers will have to wear masks and use hand sanitiser besides checking customers’ temperatures with a thermal gun at mall entrances.