Shopkeepers continue to remain affected due to slow business despite normalcy returning in riot-hit areas of the district with huge losses incurred during curfew last week.
Even though large queues are being witnessed during curfew relaxation, shopkeepers claim that the business is nowhere near to what it was before the communal clashes.
“The collective loss of shopkeepers is over Rs 30 crore in last one week when the curfew was imposed. People are coming out in the markets, but the transactions are not as they were before,” Krishan Gopal Mittal, district deputy chairman of U.P. Udhyog Vyapaar Sanghathan, said.
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A meeting of shopkeepers from various communities was called on Thursday to discuss ways to bring back the situation to normalcy, Mr. Mittal said.
The opening of shops and other business establishments has, however, helped people to move on with life as members of different communities got back working together just as they did before.
The clinic run by S.P.S. Ahlawat in Muslim dominated area of Khalapat witnessed gathering of a large number of locals as they waited for their turn for an appointment with the doctor.
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“One glimpse of him is enough for the treatment to begin. He is not only a good doctor, but also a nice person,” Nagma, a resident in the area, said.
As no major untoward incident was reported in the last two days, the curfew had been relaxed for two-and-a-half hours on Tuesday and five hours on Wednesday.
With normalcy returning to riot-hit areas of the district, curfew was further relaxed for seven hours today from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Senior Superintendent of Police Praveen Kumar has said that the situation has been normal and they received good response from curfew relaxation.
“People should be remain beware of rumour-mongers,” the SSP said.
Meanwhile, heavy rains lashed the city in the afternoon with water-logging reported from across the city including Shiv Chowk, considered one of the busiest areas of the district.