INDIA bloc rally: Delhi traders warn of Rs 12,000 crore loss amid market risk over protest

PTC News Desk: The Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI) has warned that the INDIA bloc’s rally at Ramlila Maidan could cause major disruption for Delhi’s traders. It estimates that around 2.5 lakh shops within five kilometres of the venue may remain closed, bringing nearly 80 per cent of business activity to a halt.

The traders’ body said transport and the movement of goods could also be affected within a 10-kilometre radius, disrupting markets in Central and Old Delhi during the important pre-Diwali shopping period.

CTI has sent a fourth letter to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi about the rally’s possible impact on the city’s business community.

"We are saying once again that we are not against the rally. Hold your rally, but not at the cost of the Diwali business of 20 markets. Rahul Gandhi ji, you are asking people to visit markets, but when the markets and shops are closed, transportation is stalled, and roads are blocked, where will the people attending the rally go shopping? First, ensure that the roads remain open," the CTI said in its appeal.

The organisation welcomed Gandhi’s video appeal urging rally attendees to visit local markets and shop to support traders. However, it said the situation on the ground was different, with shopkeepers and customers facing widespread uncertainty.

CTI warned that the disruption could affect festive-season business in around 20 major markets, which it estimates generate Rs 10,000–12,000 crore in daily trade. With Dhanteras on November 6 and Diwali on November 8, it described November 1 as an important day for shopping and preparations.

The group said the livelihoods of around 20 lakh traders and 75 lakh people connected to the trading sector could be affected. CTI reiterated that it was not opposed to the opposition rally, but wanted business activity and public movement to continue without disruption.

CTI Chairman Brijesh Goyal said Gandhi had urged rally participants to support local businesses, but uncertainty over the event had caused widespread concern. He said around 2.5 lakh of the roughly three lakh shops in markets within five kilometres of Ramlila Maidan were expected to remain closed.

“If the shops are closed, where will rally participants go shopping?” Goyal asked.

He rejected claims that traders were acting on behalf of the BJP, saying around 100 major market associations had called for the rally to be postponed to protect their livelihoods during the peak festive season.

“We are traders, not BJP agents. These market associations do not represent any political party. Their business is trade, not politics. We are neither supporting nor opposing any party; we are asking for our livelihoods to be protected during the Diwali season,” he said.

CTI estimated that around 2.5 lakh shops could shut, bringing nearly 80 per cent of business activity to a standstill.

Goyal also warned that the movement of goods within 10 kilometres of the rally venue could be severely disrupted, with loading and unloading operations likely to stop.

He said around 5,000 trucks and tempos usually bring goods to the markets each day from 56 industrial areas, including Narela, Bawana, Okhla, Mayapuri, Mundka and Udyog Nagar.