It is almost a month now since the government lifted most of the COVID-19 restrictions including quarantine protocol for domestic travellers. But businesses are yet to pick pace. The shopkeepers in Samdrup Jongkhar town are among the businesses awaiting a steady recovery as the country gradually resumes normalcy. Their businesses had almost come to a standstill as the town was identified as a high-risk area for the last two years.
Considered the commercial hub of the eastern region, the town used to be a happening place until the pandemic struck the country. But today, it is almost empty as some shops remain closed with only a handful of people running around.
Without much happening, the shops in the town close by 8 pm even though they are allowed to operate until 10 now.
“Although lifting the quarantine protocol came as good news, business is not going well. I used to receive many customers until the pandemic hit us. But now, I don’t see many people in the town,” said Pema Wangchuk, a shopkeeper in the town.
Shopkeepers say their businesses might pick momentum once the government lifts the five-day quarantine protocol for international travellers.
“I didn’t have many customers while the quarantine protocol was in place. Now, I get a few. And I am hopeful that I will get more customers as people visit the town like in the past,” said Sonam, a hotelier in the town.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister’s Office, on Saturday, said that the mandatory five-day facility quarantine for the international travellers will continue for now for close monitoring of the emerging variants and timely interventions.
And until the country’s gates open to international travellers without quarantine protocol, the business owners in the town are looking forward to more local visitors. They are expecting a better prospect in the next few months when farmers from the neighbouring districts will visit the town to auction their potato harvest.
Kinley Wangchuk, Samdrup Jongkhar
Edited by Phub Gyem
