Indian capital back to normal, traders still bitter
Thursday, 02 November 2006, 20:30 IST
Printer Print Email Email
NEW DELHI: The Indian capital returned to its normal self Thursday after the violence and chaos on Wednesday, the last day of the traders' strike against sealing of shops in residential areas. The city was calm as offices, business and many educational institutions opened for work. But the authorities continued to deploy the police in major markets as a precaution. The hundreds of thousands of shops across the metropolis that had remained shut for three days since Monday, in one of the biggest commercial shutdowns here, opened for business Thursday morning. But with the Supreme Court refusing to stop the sealing of unauthorised shops, questions persisted on the future of the protest campaign, with traders' associations undecided about what to do next. "All the markets are open today but trade associations will meet in the evening to decide the future course of action," said Deepak Arora, a member of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT). Traders have been on the warpath seeking regularisation of illegal commercial establishments in residential areas. Despite the relative calm Thursday, many private schools in the capital chose to stay closed after Wednesday's violence. Chaos had ruled in the city Wednesday on day three of the strike. Thousands of protesters smashed vehicles, blocked roads and railway tracks, while the central government tried to cool tempers by pleading to the Supreme Court not to resume sealing operations. Train traffic was disrupted, schools closed abruptly and people were stuck for hours in jams. The situation caught schools that were working Wednesday completely unawares. In many areas, parents rushed to take their wards home with bus operators refusing to ply and schools unwilling to take chances with the safety of the children. The tension eased in the evening after authorities declared that there would be no sealing of illegal shops Thursday. After a long meeting with civic authorities and police officials, the Supreme Court-appointed three-member committee directed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) not to resume sealing from Thursday. "The monitoring committee, after a meeting with top MCD officials decided that there will be no sealing from Thursday," said Deep Mathur, chief spokesperson of MCD. He added: "What will happen Friday onwards is still not clear." And that is something deeply worrying the trading community, including those who are not directly affected but are standing by their colleagues whose shops and business establishments face closure.
Source: IANS
siliconindia