Traders’ Jamshedpur Bandh today against Covid-19 penalties

Jamshedpur: All the trade bodies of the city, including SCCI, have called a bandh Saturday, July 25, 2020 to protest the penal provisions for violation of Covid-19 safety norms.

It may be mentioned that the state government has promulgated an ordinance providing for a Rs. 1 lakh fine and a 2-year imprisonment for violation of Covid-19 related safety protocols. Anyone found violating these norms, which include wearing mask in public and keeping social distancing, would have to be bear the brunt of the penal provisions.

The trade bodies are, however, not happy with this promulgation as they feel that it would be used as an instrument to browbeat them. They also say that this would only empower the bureaucracy more to hamper their business.

In a meeting held at the Chamber Bhavan, Bistupur, representatives of most of the trade bodies, including SCCI, supported the call for bandh. They said that they do support the measures taken by the state and central government to contain the disease, but are not in favour of such penal provisions that entail Rs. one lakh fine and imprisonment of two years.

They said that the penal provisions defy all logic and would be misused by the police and authorities.

They said that the traders would continue protesting the new law until it is withdrawn.