Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (EP)

Udupi, April 11: The governments at the centre and the state have ordered lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Due to which business has come to a standstill as people are locked down in their homes. In Kaup town in Udupi, medium class merchants who were primarily engaged in business by borrowing loans from the banks and taking up shops for rent have got their business and income hit hard due to the lockdown. Small scale shops owners have been devastated.

The government has been providing ration only to BPL card holders and no help is provided to the medium class. A few donors and businessmen have been distributing essential items but those have not reached to all the needy. As the shops are closed, traders are even unable to pay their shop rents.

"Businessmen who were already struggling to pay their rent even during normal days after deducting their expenses are helpless on what to do during this current trying situation. They will be put to great hardship if the lockdown continues and they would have to inevitably borrow more loans. Some landlords have already condoned a month’s rent," Kaup block youth congress president Melwyn DSouza said.

"The district administration and the state government should intervene immediately and waive two month’s rent together with interest. The deputy commissioner should direct the concerned to act on compassionate grounds,” Dsouza appealed.

“Similarly several people in Shirva, Shankerpura and other villages depend on jasmine cultivation for their livelihood. However their business has stopped due to the lockdown. People have grown jasmine plants with great difficulty spending for manure and other requirements. Several families depend on its income. As religious programmes and weddings have stopped, the growers may have to throw the flowers plucked from the plants on the roads. The saplings spoil if the flowers are not plucked. The flowers, during normal days get transported to other districts and are also exported to other countries. Coronavirus has made them incur huge loss. Therefore, the district administration and state government should provide suitable compensation to them immediately,” DSouza said in solidarity with the flower growers.