Lockdown spurs people to stock up essentials
Dist admn assures availability of all necessary commodities
LUCKNOW: There was a mad scramble in the state to stock up groceries on Wednesday after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a never-before national lockdown for the next 21 days to counter Sars-Cov-2 spread. Panic -stricken customers wanting to stock rations for the next three weeks rushed to grocery shops. The shop owners had a tough time catering to the mass demand and some small outlets ran dry.
The administration, however, assured availability of all essential commodities.
In Lucknow, Ajeet Kumar, proprietor of a provision store at Tehripulia in Alambagh said it was as if a panic button had been pushed. People came in large numbers to buy groceries and essentials once the PM’s address was over. “I had to make them wait as I wanted them to maintain a distance from each other. Now some items like tea, coffee, flour, sugar, green tea and salt are totally sold out. I have ordered the wholesalers again. Police in the area promised to cooperate but told me to supply the goods at home instead of people collecting them at the shop.”
Dinesh Gupta, who has a grocery store in Shanti Nagar Barha said, “Police told me to avoid people forming queues, so I told everyone to give me a list. I will call them once their groceries are packed.”
He said, “I have to fetch a new stock and this supply would be delivered with the help of administrative officials.”
Nikhil Chaturvedi, a resident of Alambagh said, “The lockdown has come at the end of the month, when all the grocery items are almost finished. But I have managed to get some stock. However, I am hopeful that the district administration will not let us die without food.”
“When the Prime Minister announced the Janata Curfew, we stocked rations and vegetables anticipating that the situation would be normal in a week or so. But the countrywide lockdown made us buy more essentials because supplies from other states would be affected,” said Kaustubh Mishra, a resident of Indiranagar, Lucknow.
ADMN CLAIMS AVAILABILITY OF ESSENTIALS
Lucknow’s district administration on Wednesday issued an order stating that essentials would be available and it would also be ensured that people do not rush to shops.
“Stores dealing in Fruit, vegetables, rations, medicines and other essentials selling can be opened from 6 am to 11 pm medical stores near hospitals and petrol pumps will function 24X7,” said Abhishek Prakash, Lucknow DM.
“If this is the case, one can buy essentials practicing social distancing at the stores,” said BK Singh, a resident of Gomtinagar.
However, several kirana stores in residential localities have gone dry. Some vegetable vendors are also facing dearth of items due to panic buying.
There was pressure on online grocers who had been assuring the delivery even week after the order. “This forced people to turn up to the local kirana stores as malls were also shut, drying up small grocers,” said Priteesh Shrivastava, another Kirana store owner.
ONLINE GROCERS ALLOWED TO FUNCTION
Following chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s directions, the administration has deployed some vehicles for door to door delivery. Dial 112 services were already assisting people needing essentials, said an official. Divisional commissioner Mukesh Meshram said, “We have deployed some vehicles and more will be pressed in soon.” He added that there was no ban on online grocers and app-based food suppliers. “The idea is to ensure that people are at home.”
However, online grocers are facing staff shortage as most of the delivery guys are staying home fearing infection.
In Prayagraj panic buying began on Tuesday night itself and continued on Wednesday morning. Long queues of anxious residents were seen outside shops selling milk and other dairy products while grocery shops also witnessed heavy rush of customers. Fuel stations were also crowded in almost every part of the city. Shops selling puja material for Navratri also did brisk business on Tuesday night.
The supply of essential commodities remained affected as government fair price shops in most localities remained closed on Wednesday.
District magistrate Prayagraj Bhanu Chand Goswami said efforts were on to ensure availa
bility of all essential commodities and anyone found hoarding would face stern action. He also said that measures were underway to start home delivery of goods by shops, he added.
MEDICAL SHOPS RUN DRY
Retail chemist shops in the Prayagraj were experiencing scarcity of medicines due to closure of supply by wholesalers.
According to a chemist in Civil Lines, bulk suppliers kept their shops closed on Wednesday as they received no specific orders.
As per Anil Dubey, president of Allahabad Chemist and Druggist Association, around 400 wholesale shops in the city were catering to over 1000 retail medicine outlets in district.
“Police were not allowing our staff to reach the shop and no arrangements had been made for us to supply medicines ordered by retail outlet owners at their door step. The administration was sitting quiet on the issue due to which stock in retail medicine outlets was getting exhausted gradually in city,” he said.
In Varanasi too, a rush was seen in vegetable markets and at medical stores and grocery shops despite appeals by the administration to avoid panic buying as there was no dearth of essential commodities and shops would open for certain hours. Arrangements are also being made to ensure the supply of the essential commodities in localities. However, many locals followed social distancing at medical stores.