Traders of Chawri Bazaar, Khari Baoli, and Azadpur Mandi that wore a deserted look post-demonetisation and which reportedly lost 80 per cent of its business, claimed to have recovered as suppliers and wholesalers adopted the cashless way of business.
Succha Singh Namdhari, a fruit and orchid flower wholesaler at the Azadpur mandi said, “Retailers still prefer to pay in cash but most importantly, we are doing our trade as earlier. Even locals and small farmers have started accepting the E-mode of payment, mostly cheques, and now, it has become popular among transporters, suppliers and traders.”
“It took time for us to get out of the trauma of note-ban but I am delighted that things have fallen back to pace. Before demonetisation, transporters refused to accept payments in cheque but after the historic move, they had no other option left, and subsequently they have started accepting it. I have also been paying wages to the labourers in their bank accounts,” Namdhari said.
Dinesh Bhatt of GlR companies at Chawari Bazaar said that suppliers were undoubtedly affected. But the common man was the most affected as there was shortage of essential food items in the market, due to which, price of essential commodities saw an upswing.
Sunil Yadav, a fruit trader at the Azadpur Mandi, claimed that when money started flowing in, supplies were restored and as things stand today, businesses are happening without any hindrance. “Yes, we went through a difficult phase of time but now things have eased,” he said.
Remembering the days after the move was announced, S K Shukla, who deals in vegetables at the Azadpur Mandi, swhich is Asia’s largest market for food and vegetables, said, “The mandi, where one could not even find little space to walk, looked empty after demonetisation but now it is abuzz with customers and trucks loaded with fruits and vegetables.”
“With lack of buyers, small street vendors, shopkeepers and aggregators for hotels and restaurants, sales crashed but now we are doing it with much ease,” he said.
Sinil Makhija of Makhija and sons, who sells dry fruits at Khari Baoli, said that I was very disturbed at the way the market responded to demonetisation. There was a sharp reduction in the demand for goods but within six months, situation improved.
“We are doing businesses as usual without facing any problem. Retailers are paying us by cheques and traders are paying to suppliers through electronic transfer,” he said.