SHILLONG: The look on her face was one of dejection and the reason was not too far to seek—the empty shopping bag she clutched was the giveaway.
She had come to Jhalupara hoping to pick up some essentials, but by noon shops had to pull down the shutters on instructions of the police as the area was chock-a-bloc with shoppers. In the times of coronavirus, crowding is a big no-no.
“I was told the shops would remain open till evening, but they are closed,” the woman said.
She was not alone in her predicament as several parts in the city witnessed near-chaotic scenes on Friday once the curfew was relaxed to enable people to stock up on essential commodities.
The promised online service was a non-starter, too.
Demand for opening of more shops was immediate as there were complaints that several people were buying in bulk and stocks were over within 2-3 hours.
There were suggestions, too.
One was about door-to-door service.
A senior citizen not wishing to be named suggested that during lockdown period the district administration should hold
meetings area wise with Dorbar Shnong/NGOs/welfare organisation and village heads to provide volunteers to start door- to-door type of service in their respective areas.
“In this regard citizens are willing to bear a minimum charge by such volunteers because they use no vehicles. This measure will not only ensure proper lockdown but also all essential stores can be open throughout and no direct purchase should be allowed”, he said.
The purchase should be allowed only through these volunteers. The volunteers should put on masks and gloves and should be provided with sanitisers by shopkeepers to avoid direct contact and should be provided with proper IDs specifying the areas of their operation. Different colours should be used for different localities. This will help proper lockdown and control over people coming out of their houses and no more closing of essential items.
“However, all buying should be limited to a maximum of 3kg of rice, a kg of sugar etc depending on stock availability in order to avoid panic buying which could exhaust stock and also spike prices.
In this regard even administration can function smoothly because social distancing can be achieved in three phases: Supplier supplying to retailers, retailers supplying to volunteers and volunteers providing door-to-door service only in their respective area.
Rural area needs
Another citizen while welcoming some measures of the government asked that food and medical needs of rural areas be addressed.
“Or else, by the time the lockdown ends, there will be more casualties from hunger than from COVID-19”, he cautioned.
In every village there are many students who have just returned homes, some from mainland India and some from abroad. Most of them have not reported to the authority concerned.
“The authority may take note of this and appeal to the Rangbah Shnong of these villages to report all these cases so as to enable the government to screen them and do the needful lest we face an outbreak”, he said.
