There’s good news for Kolkatans, as New Market opens its gates for customers on June 1. Sanitisation work is in progress. Shops will operate with 50% staff. Customers will be allowed keeping social distancing in mind. However, the new timings will be from 10 am to 5.30 pm.After a meeting held on May 27, a notice has been issued by the president and general secretary of S.S.Hogg Market Traders’ Association — old & new complex). It says that the market will remain open from June 1, 2020, onward from 7 am till 6 pm for essential and perishable items. From 10 am to 6 pm non-essential items will be sold. All the staffs, customers and shop owners must leave the market premises by 5.30 pm sharp. No electricity will be available after 5.30 pm inside the market complex. Every stall holder and staffs will wear face mask, hand gloves and keep hand sanitisers ready mandatorily. Safe social distancing norms of six feet to be maintained between customers and staffs inside the shops. Encroachment inside the market complex on the floor surface and passage is strictly prohibited.
No hanging of any materials outside the shops are allowed. Smoking, chewing and spitting etc are strictly prohibited inside the market complex; On daily basis (except Sundays and government declared market holidays) only three main gates will remain open inside the old market complex and three main gates will remain open inside the new complex during business hours by KMC till further order. Any stallholder is free to sanitise his or her shop at his own expense without taking permission from the KMC. Every stall holder has to keep sanitiser in the shop so that every customer can be sanitised before entering and also social distancing norms to be followed while dealing with the customers strictly. Every customer has to wear a mask mandatorily inside the market complex and his or her sanitisation and thermal checking will be done by assigned staffs of KMC at all the entry and exit points. “We closed down on March 22. On June 1, we will open shops again with 50% staff. We will follow all the sanitisation rules and guidelines. Of the many gates at New Market, only three will be open for customers. We have started our online services too,” informed Ajay Shaw, owner of a cosmetics shop in New Market.
Source: Times of India
