It must be said that the business community in Panaji has been grossly affected by the digging of roads as part of the ongoing ‘Smart City’ project. The roads leading to their shops and business premises were dug and have remained in that state for several weeks. It has become very difficult for shoppers to gain access to most of the shops as a result of the dug up roads and open drains. The shopkeepers are silently suffering all this loss for no fault of theirs while they pay all the dues and taxes to the government with respect to their business activities. It would be in the fitness of things for the government to come to the rescue of all those shopkeepers who have been affected due to the activities related to the ‘Smart City’ project. The government needs to announce a relief package to help the business community, especially the small-time traders. The government could also waive off rent, taxes and all other dues of the affected shopkeepers until such time that things return to normalcy in the city.
