Sustained lockdown drives many in unorganised sector to sell

For two weeks, Mohammad Irfan went to bed on a half-empty stomach, making sure his children get three square meals a day, but with the extension of the lockdown, the rickshaw-puller in the city's Paikpara area knew it was time to look for an alternative source of income.

Irfan, these days, wakes up at 4 am and rushes to wholesalers' hub - Mechhua Bazar - to procure vegetables and fruits, which he then sells in his neighbourhood.

Much like Irfan, taxi drivers, small shopkeepers, tea stall owners and other vendors in the city, who mostly trade in non-essential items, have taken to selling vegetables, fruits and fish, with the COVID-19-induced lockdown having dried up much of their resources.

West Bengal Consumer Affairs Minister Sadhan Pandey, when asked about this trend, said if the traders abide by the norms, the government sees no reason to stop them. "They can surely opt for an alternative source of income in this hour ofcrisis... Just that they should do business ...