MINGORA: The daily wagers in Swat have said they will face financial problems in case of lockdown in Mingora as they earn livelihood for their families on daily basis.

Sitting in Mingora Bazaar, they told this scribe that they bought food items and other daily use commodities for their families on daily basis after earning few bucks.

“We don’t have any other means of income. We come to Mingora Bazaar to find work of carrying loads from one place to another,” said Azam Khan, a daily wager. He added that during the two-day lockdown he did not find work and borrowed money from his neighbours to buy food items.

The daily wagers said that they were perturbed over the proposed lockdown for a long time.

The barbers also showed concerns over closure of their shops and said that they would face famine if their shops were kept closed for one more week.

“What will we do if the government keeps our shops closed for one more week? Will the government provide us with food and other daily use items? What will our families eat,” questioned Sher Mohammad Khan, a barber in Mingora.

Many barbers said that they did not have their own shops but work on daily wages in shops of other people.

“I work at Rs700 per day with which I buy daily use items for my family. After the government closed the barbershops, I borrowed food and other daily use items from a shopkeeper. If the barbershops remain closed for long time it will create a big problem for us,” said Zahoor, a hairdresser in Amankot.

Zamin Khan, a daily wager in Saidu Sharif, said that they didn’t want to get infected by coronavirus but they could not afford to sit idle for a single day. “We are in a dilemma. If we go out to bazaar, coronavirus may affect but we will starvation if we don’t go out to bazaar,” he added.

The daily wagers said that government should provide food items to them so that they and their family members could survive.

Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner Saqib Raza Aslam has imposed ban on pillion riding. He also imposed ban on travelling of more than two passengers in a rickshaw and four passengers in a Suzuki pickup. He also imposed ban on gathering of five persons as well as playing in the grounds.

Published in Dawn, March 24th, 2020