Tag: Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh

‘Covid-19 Has Taught Us Valuable Business Lessons’

By LokMarg

Sachin Kumar (25), a Cyber Café owner in Moradabad, UP, had to shut shop for three months after the district became a Covid-19 Hot Spot. With the start of Unlock, Kumar is picking up the pieces with hope

My business was dependent on people who wanted a secure future. I run a cyber café which also helps in filing online application in government offices for various documents. Before Coronavirus hit us, it was a hub where youngsters would come for buying and submitting exam forms. Many would apply for PAN cards after they got their first job, some applied for passports, driving licenses or its renewal. The pandemic taught me that nothing is certain. Right now, just about surviving is my only objective.

I had started my cyber café in Moradabad (Uttar Pradesh) two years ago and had even hired a person to help me out. But after this district turned a hotspot for Covid-19, strict lockdown meant my business nosedived. Now with Unlock process, we are picking up the pieces with hope. I believe things will keep getting better with each passing day. If people follow all the social distancing norms, businesses will restart again. We all need it.

ALSO READ: ‘No Work For 4 Months Drains Creativity’

I reopened my café on July 1, after remaining shut for nearly three months. Since then we have 20-25 people coming in every day. It used to draw nearly 200 people earlier. But I like to see things positively. If right at the beginning of Unlock we are able to draw 10% of the business, in a year or two we should get back to pre-pandemic level. Things never remain the same, but love and support from family means we can overcome this together. The business community too needs to come forward as a family to support each other.

I take care to practice social distancing norms in my café. Only one person is entertained at a time and only people wearing masks are allowed in. I wipe my counter with surface sanitizer after every interaction. We have bought a 5 litre bottle and though it comes at a high cost (₹900), I don’t want to take any chances either for me or my customers. We mop the floor with disinfectants at regular intervals. Plus, we also have a thick plastic curtain that is being used in most shops to ensure distancing.

ALSO READ: ‘Reopening Our Restaurant Needed Courage’

Earlier, the times when Board results were announced, it was brisk business for us. My shop would be swarmed by schoolchildren and their parents; this year that excitement was missing. Most of them called me on the phone to check their results or did it on their own smartphones.

We also used to earn a lot from money transfer, sale of offline forms, sale of government and private sector jobs, lamination, challan submissions, application for licenses and passports etc. Now, no one is coming to buy new forms, or filing online applications.

Yet, it is nice to see that despite the uncertainty people haven’t stopped studying and many of them come for getting study materials ‘Xeroxed’. I feel education is an essential thing and people aspiring for a better life will also never stop, so I feel as soon as this pandemic is under control, businesses like ours will be one of the firsts to get back on its feet.

Hot Spot Zone

‘Hot Spot Zone Residents Must Follow Rules Strictly’

By LokMarg

Paras Gupta, 27, an IT professional who got stuck in a hot spot zone during a visit to his hometown in Moradabad, says people in a containment area must adhere to the rules set by administration

I live and work in Noida, Delhi-NCR. In mid-March I had come to my hometown Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh for some family work. I have been here since the lockdown was first announced. In a way, I am happy that I get to be with my family at such a crucial time. My house is in Kothiwal Nagar area which has been declared as a hot spot zone.

I must congratulate the local administration due to which we are facing no problem as far as the essential supplies are concerned. There’s no shortage of fruits, vegetables or milk etc. The timing of grocery stores are strictly regulated and the authorities make sure everyone gets the essential items they need.

ALSO READ: ‘Life Is Tough In Hot Spot Zone’

 My family and I are facing no problems at all even though we are living in a high-risk zone. The containment measures are strictly followed, which is good for everybody’s safety. If by not going out, we can save our own lives as well as that of others, we surely can do that much for our society.

Only if more people (in fact everyone) had behaved responsibly, we wouldn’t have reached such a crisis situation, where for the fault of a few an entire locality has to live locked inside their houses. Many people at the early stages of the Coronavirus pandemic were unaware about the precautions to take, but now everyone knows about the dos and the don’ts. Still there are so many people who don’t follow measures like social distancing.

ALSO READ: ‘Lockdown Has Turned My Kids Into Chefs’

I am an IT Professional and thus working from home isn’t a problem right now. However, I wish I had a little more time so I could help my mother a bit more with the household chores. In all this, I also take out time to keep myself updated with the news and connect with my friends over phone. The other day I was missing my friends badly and really wanted to meet him, but my father sat me down and talked to me about how little discipline goes a long way.

I think if we can listen to our parents, we can listen to the authorities as well. I feel the centre is doing effective communication and soon we should be able to flatten the curve if enough people listen.

‘Life In Hot Spot Is Tough, Going To Work Makes It Worse’

By LokMarg

Himanshu Saxena, resident of a hot spot zone in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, goes to work at a bank daily. Saxena says he lives in constant fear of contracting Covid-19

I live in the Chaurasi Ghanta area of Moradabad. The area is close to a hot spot, Nawabpura, which was in the news recently for attack on the police and medical team isn’t very far off from where I stay. Moradabad has seen a drastic increase in coronavirus cases recently.

Living in a hotspot is indeed tough. The rules for movement are very strict. Even if you want to take your mind off coronavirus for a single minute, you can’t. You know that you are living in a high-danger zone and every day you have to find your courage again and again to be able to go to work.

ALSO READ: ‘Even Women Were Throwing Stones At Med Team’

Since I work in a bank, unlike other people I can’t work from home and I have to go to work every day at Gandhi Nagar. So, you can say people like us have suffered a double blow. We suffer because of lack of services and are constantly exposed to the virus because we go to work every day.

When I come back from work, I have to take full precaution that I do not touch my family members without first taking a bath properly. Earlier we all used to sit together as a family in the evenings and laugh with each other. That has stopped. With not being able to meet friends and neighbours and limited interactions with our own family members as well, we hope this ends soon. I totally respect social distancing though.

We spend a lot of time updating ourselves on the current local news. The good thing is that people in my area cooperate with the police and the medical teams and listen to them as well as give their inputs.

ALSO READ: ‘Choked Toilets, Smelly Bedsheets; Quarantine Was Jail’

I hope the situation improves soon and our lives can go back to normal. This living in constant fear, the spectre of coronavirus hanging over everyone’s head all the time, has gone on for too long now.

At the bank, ensuring that the many welfare schemes started by the central and state governments are reaching the poor through the bank is a tall order. We can’t afford to slack off for even a minute, because someone’s life or livelihood might depend on it. My father runs a government PDS (Public Distribution Scheme) shop, so both of us come under the category of essential service provider ourselves. He also has to go to work every day.

With both of us out for work daily, our family is completely dependent on the other essential service providers for fruits, vegetables, milk etc. Despite all the precautions, we still fear about coming in contact with strangers and worry about how many hands the fruits and vegetables might have been transferred through.