New Delhi: The Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI) on Sunday warned of an unprecedented crisis for Delhi's business community due to the INDIA bloc's mega rally at Ramlila Maidan, claiming that around 2.5 lakh shops within a five-kilometre radius of the venue are likely to remain closed, while nearly 80 per cent of business activity could come to a standstill.
The traders' body said the rally could also disrupt transportation and movement of goods across a 10-kilometre radius, affecting markets in Central Delhi and Old Delhi during the crucial pre-Diwali shopping season.
CTI has written a fourth letter to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over the potential impact of the rally on the national capital's trading community.
Welcoming Gandhi's video appeal asking people attending the rally to visit Delhi's markets and shop to support traders, CTI said the ground situation was entirely different, with widespread panic and uncertainty among shopkeepers and customers.
CTI Chairman Brijesh Goyal said that although Gandhi had urged rally participants to support local businesses, the prevailing situation had created such panic that around 2.5 lakh of the approximately three lakh shops in markets within a five-kilometre radius of Ramlila Maidan were expected to remain closed.
"When the shops themselves will remain closed, where will the people attending the rally go for shopping?" Goyal asked.
Rejecting allegations that traders were acting as agents of the BJP, Goyal said around 100 major market associations had appealed for the rally to be postponed, not for political reasons but to protect their livelihoods during the peak festive season.
"We are traders, not BJP agents. These 100 major market associations are not agents of any political party. They are traders of Delhi, and their business is trade, not politics. We are neither in favour of nor against any political party. We were only appealing to protect our livelihoods during the peak Diwali season," he said.
The organisation claimed that around 2.5 lakh shops could remain shut, resulting in nearly 80 per cent of business activity coming to a halt.
Highlighting transportation concerns, Goyal said goods movement within a 10-kilometre radius of the rally venue was also expected to be severely disrupted, with loading and unloading operations likely to remain suspended.
He said around 5,000 trucks and tempos carrying goods from 56 industrial areas, including Narela, Bawana, Okhla, Mayapuri, Mundka and Udyog Nagar, normally reach these markets daily.
"The entire supply chain has been disrupted today. Goods meant for the Dhanteras season are lying in warehouses and cannot reach the shops," he said.
The CTI further claimed that customers from nearby cities and towns, including Sonipat, Panipat, Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Noida, Meerut, Bahadurgarh and Jhajjar, were also likely to avoid visiting Delhi due to concerns over traffic congestion and market closures.
Goyal also raised concerns over parking arrangements, questioning where the estimated 15,000 to 20,000 buses, cars and tempos required to transport a large number of rally participants would be accommodated.
He warned that vehicle movement and parking along JLN Marg, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, Netaji Subhash Marg, Ajmeri Gate and Chandni Chowk Road could create severe congestion across Central and Old Delhi.
The traders' body said the disruption could threaten the festive-season business of around 20 major markets, which it estimated at Rs 10,000-12,000 crore daily. With Dhanteras falling on November 6 and Diwali on November 8, November 1 is considered a crucial day for preparations and shopping.
The CTI said the livelihoods of around 20 lakh traders and 75 lakh people associated with the trading ecosystem could be affected.
Reiterating its position, the organisation clarified that it was not opposed to the opposition rally but wanted business activities and public movement to remain unaffected.
"We are saying once again that we are not against the rally. Hold your rally, but not at the cost of the Diwali business of 20 markets. Rahul Gandhi ji, you are asking people to visit markets, but when the markets and shops are closed, transportation is stalled, and roads are blocked, where will the people attending the rally go shopping? First, ensure that the roads remain open," the CTI said in its appeal.
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