SATISH HANDA

On the appeal of Prime Minister Narender Modi, Deputy Commissioner Ambala Ashok Kumar ordered corona curfew on Sunday as such all commercial establishments remained closed in the district. The impact of curfew was seen and residents of twin city Ambala remained inside their houses throughout the day as ordered by district administration. There was no traffic on the roads as well as railway stations. According to information, as many as 86 trains in Ambala divisional, which included 67 passenger trains and 19 mail or express trains were cancelled by railway department apart from 193 buses belonging to Haryana roadways failed to ply on roads at106 routes. Nearly 56 private buses having permits from Regional Transport Authority Ambala having on 13 routes in the area also remained suspended during the day. Moreover, nearly 2000 auto three-wheelers in Ambala district carrying local passengers also suspended their services as per direction by district administration.

There was no OPD at three civil hospitals in the district however, emergency section in these hospitals remained open round the clock offering medical services to emergency patients. According to Dr. Sudhir Kapoor member Indian Medical Association, nearly 70 private hospitals in the district participated in corona curfew, closed OPD in their hospitals except attended only serious patients.  More than 150 fruit and vegetable shops in wholesale vegetable market remained closed, besides more than 1500 shops in famous Sadar area Ambala Cantt closed down their shutters due to corona curfew terror. Similarly, nearly 300 jewellery shops in Sarafa Bazar in twin city also remained closed. Asia’s biggest wholesale cloth market having nearly 1100 shops in which more than 11000 persons are employed supplying cloth in Haryana as well as in adjoining states declared to close down the market for five days on the advisory issued by district administration likely to be extended further, Vishal Batra president wholesale cloth market association said.

According to information by Sat Pal Dhall President Market Association Ambala Cantt, traders in the town are facing severe crisis since past two weeks with more than 70% decline in sale and situation turning grim further in the absence of customers. State government is worried about shortage of face masks and hand sanitizers and sale of spurious quality material being manufactured illegally without having license and approval from the government. Information reveals that in past three days Food & Supply Department, Haryana conducted 1669 raids which include 1603 chemist shops and 66 godowns in the state including 314 at Panchkula, 146 at Bhiwani, 124 at Hisar, 111 at Jhajjar, 110 at Faridabad, 109 at Karnal, 96 at Mewat, 83 at Ambala, 72 each at Kaithal & Kurukshetra, 69 at Rohtak, 68 at Gurugram, 62 at Dadri, 56 at Narnaul, 42 at Sonepat, 41 each at Rewari and Panipat, 40 at Jind, 37 at Fatehabad, 31 at Sirsa, 13 at Rohtak, 6 at Palwal and 5 at Yamunanagar.