COVID-19: Traders body urges Delhi CM Kejriwal to extend lockdown beyond April 26

The domestic traders' body CAIT has urged the Delhi government to further extend the lockdown beyond April 26 to bring the pandemic under control. In a letter to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said going by the current statistics, the situation is quite alarming in Delhi. 

"The CAIT has urged for extension of lockdown in Delhi beyond April 26 as and when the situation is improved, the lockdown can be lifted," the confederation said in a statement to the Delhi government. 

Delhi is currently under a six-day lockdown, which will end on April 26 morning. The traders' body has written a letter to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Lt Governor Anil Baijal saying that lockdown was crucial to curb the rising cases in the city.

CAIT Secretary-General Praveen Khandelwal noted that currently, Delhi is reeling from a 36.24% positivity rate, which means that every third person tested in Delhi is COVID-19 positive. He urged that the government must take urgent steps in view of fast deteriorating medical facilities in Delhi.

He acknowledging that though any lockdown causes great financial loss to traders and the economy of the state, yet traders want that the lives of the people be saved rather than thinking of the financial losses.

On Friday evening, over 35 market associations of Delhi held a meeting to discuss the matter and agreed that the traders would themselves keep the markets shut for a few more days in the national capital as they felt that breaking the chain of infection was important.