NEW DELHI: The famous addas of Delhiites at Sarojini Nagar Market are not the same anymore in the light of the advisory on social isolation to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Sales have drastically dropped in shops as a result of the low footfall.
Sarojini Market is one of the most famous cloths markets situated in South Delhi. Usually chock-a-block with people, the lanes of the market wore an uncharacteristically deserted look on Thursday. Streets usually filled with thousands had hardly any cutomers in sight.
“There’s been a massive dip in our sales. We are used to dealing with hundreds of customers daily, but now even with a sale put up, customers are not turning up. I used to make about Rs 15-20 thousand a day but now it is hard to make even Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000,” said Yogendra Kumar, who runs a bags and accessories shop. Another shopkeeper, Pankaj Yadav said, “We are also very scared but what can we do, if we don’t turn up to work, it will be hard for us to survive. Also, most of our staff and workers have left the city and returned to their home town.”
“The clothes which we usually sold for Rs 500 are now being sold for only Rs 200, even then no one is coming to shop. It is proving to be very difficult to very difficult for daily wagers like us,” he said.
Some shopkeepers demanded for a temporary closure of the market. “We are also in danger. The government should put a mandatory closure of all these shops. Since we travel daily to the shops and work under agents, we can’t shut our shops until the government issues any order,” said a worker.
No end in sight
Sales have drastically dropped in shops at Sarojini Nagar Market as a result of the low footfall. Many staffers have returned to their home towns expecting further dip in sales.