Malls open even past 8pm, traders say it’s about livelihoods

It was 9:30pm on Tuesday as a good number of people entered and exited Bashundhara City shopping mall in the capital through the main entrance. Ignoring government directives to close markets at 8pm as part of the ongoing Covid-19 lockdown, the market, one of the biggest in Dhaka, was still open.

Shopper Sumi Akhter told The Business Standard she had come out for shopping after iftar as many markets in Dhaka remained open even after 8pm.   

"Shopping should not be a problem if markets are open after 8pm, though I am aware of the government directives," she said. 

This is the picture in not only Bashundhara mall but also in other markets in different areas of Dhaka. In the face of the second wave of the coronavirus, the government has asked market authorities to be open for business from 10am to 8pm and to maintain hygiene rules as well.

But a number of markets have not been abiding by the directives, with some remaining open till midnight. Shoppers go to the markets even after 10pm.

Shop owners say they keep stores open in the evening as they do not get that many customers earlier in the day. They also claim that central air-conditioners, escalators, and elevators are switched off after 8pm.

The reality, though, is different in most malls. Some shopping centres stop operating their escalators at 8pm, only to restart them after a little while.

"We need at least an hour to close everything when it turns 8 o'clock. We just cannot force shoppers out of the store even if it is already 8pm," said Abdur Razzak, sales manager of Sharee Bazar at Bashundhara mall.     

He termed this year's Eid business dull.

Taslima Akhter, who came to the mall with her family members, said she was aware that markets ought to close at 8pm, but "it is easy to lose track of time when you are shopping."     

A store owner in New Market, Al Amin Hossain notes that his daily sales in the Eid season used to reach Tk1 lakh before the deadly coronavirus broke out. But on Tuesday, his sales figures reached a mere Tk37,000.

"My store is still open as I am waiting for a few more customers," he said when asked why he had not closed yet.      

Anisur Rahman, a shop owner at Chandni Chwak, said it was not possible to recoup the big losses traders had suffered due to Covid-19. He kept his store open as "I need to pay my workers' wages and Eid bonuses."

The trader suggested that the government keep markets open till midnight to reduce crowds and allow shoppers to shop comfortably after iftar.  

Shahina Akhter came to Gausia market at 9pm as "it was too hot in the day."

"I thought there would be fewer crowds after iftar and heard that markets remained open until 11pm," she said.    

Nazim Uddin, President of Chandni Chawk Shop Owners Association, told The Business Standard that traders were compelled to keep stores even open after 8pm.

"You need to understand that it is all about livelihood. People even steal when they cannot arrange food for themselves," he said.

He also said the association had urged the government to allow traders to keep stores open till 11pm before Eid to help them recover the huge losses inflicted by the pandemic.    

It is not only about traders keeping shops open even after closing time. Many shoppers and store owners do not wear face masks. They do not maintain social distancing either while entering and leaving markets as well as shopping despite repeated loudspeaker announcements inside the malls asking them to do so.

But the Bangladesh Shop Owners Association President, Helal Uddin, told The Business Standard traders were always conscious about maintaining hygiene rules. He said China market in Paltan had been kept closed for several hours on Tuesday as health safety measures had not been followed.

The market was re-opened when health guidelines had been complied with, he added.  

He added that he was not aware of any shopping mall that remained open after 8pm.  

"Maybe shops outside malls or the makeshift ones on footpaths remain open," he added.