By A Staff Reporter
Kathmandu, Aug. 11: Wholesalers and retailers operating their businesses in Watu of Ward No. 22 and New Road have defied the ward office’s order to shut down the markets even after over a dozen people of the area were found infected with the coronavirus.
According to ward chairman Chinikaji Maharjan, the office on Monday issued a public notice requesting all types of shops and offices to shut down their markets until further notice.
“But during our monitoring this afternoon, majority of the shops were found open as usual,” Maharjan said.
Maharjan said that the ward office had planned to collect swab samples of more than 500 people of the ward, including the shop owners and employees, on Tuesday.
The ward office has requested the shop owners to close the markets and offices, including banks and microfinance offices, until the reports of the swab tests come, he said. Some of the locals and shop operators didn’t abide by the notice of the ward office, he said.
He said that the Watu area is the main hub for doing all kinds of shopping and the businessmen for their day-to-day trading.
More than 20 people, including businessmen of Ward Nos. 22 and 27 of Watu and New Road were found infected with the coronavirus after the government lifted the lockdown, Maharjan said.

Meanwhile, issuing a joint public notice, Ward Nos. 12 and 21 of Kathmandu Metropolitan City have urged all the locals, traders, banking and financial institutions to shut down their businesses until further notice.
A meeting of the two ward committees held on Monday decided to suspend non-essential services except for essential ones.
Ward No. 12 covers the area from Tripureshwore up to Teku while Ward No. 21 covers areas like Jaisi Dewal, Lagan, Sil Khana, and Yangal.
The ward offices have also restricted operation of all shops except the shops selling daily essential goods, medicines, drinking water and other emergency works.
According to the notice, the essential services were also allowed to do business every morning until 10:00 am and 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm, every day.