Jamshedpur garment traders worry for rodents menace amidst lockdown

Jamshedpur, June 12: While traders across the city are concerned about slump in the economy, the garment traders in the city are struggling to deal with a different problem: the rodent menace. With shutter closed for more than three months the garment showrooms and cloth traders are worried that rats might have destroyed their products. Several of the merchants claimed that they are suffering first from the lockdown norms and with the onset of rains fear of rats.
�Our stores are closed from past from March and we are worried that rats might have been swarming into our godowns and damaging clothes worth lakhs stocked by us. And with onset of monsoons the problem will worsen,� said a cloth merchant of Sakchi.
He said that some of the traders who went to take stock of the situation said that rats have damaged their products over the months. He said that moreover as the holes of rats are now filled with rainwater, the godowns and stores have turned safe haven for them.
Men in the business have claimed that at least 25 to 30 per cent of their stocks are damaged by rats annually. The worst affected are rice, wheat, pulses and sugar wholesalers. The traders claimed that they have tried almost every possible way from installing electric rat repellants to rat trap. Some even renovated their godowns by strengthening the concrete floor to keep the rodents at bay. But it was of no avail.
Though the state government has allowed opening of standalone electronics and telecom shops outside containment zones as a part of Unlock 1.0 since June 1, garment, footwear, and salons have been debarred to reopen, causing resentment among traders. Garment and footwear traders have been questioning the logic behind the state government�s move to keep their establishments shut while allowing many other shops selling �non-essentials� to resume business.
Another trader said people wanted to buy a range of products, from garments to shoes, and, therefore, all shops must be allowed to open on rotation basis. �We are equally concerned over the rise in Covid 19 cases across the state like other shops all garment shops will follow social distancing norms. We must be allowed to operate,� he noted.