Amid coronavirus scare, the demand for surgical and N95 masks including hand sanitizers increased manifold in the state with some people claiming they were being sold at rates much higher than the actual cost.
In the state capital (Kohima) and the commercial hub (Dimapur) face mask and hand sanitizers have run out of stock with most dealers. As this Correspondent visited the market area at Kohima town Monday, it was found that face masks were in high demand including hand sanitizers. Prices of these items in the market shot up by almost 50% from the main source due to shortage and high demand, a shopkeeper said.
Earlier, these items were slow moving, but the coronavirus scare has made people stock up by buying in bulk, another shopkeeper said after he sold the last 100 pieces mask to a customer.
In Dimapur as well, a wholesale dealer told Nagaland Post that there has been a sudden surge in demand for face masks and hand sanitizers. “Due to shortage of supply from the main dealers, we are unable to meet the market demand,” he added.
He also informed that some government agency had bought huge number of surgical masks. He also said that there was huge demand from outside the state as well.
Meanwhile, as the scarcity of face masks has become a global issue, interestingly a student from Dimapur was compelled to courier face masks to his friend who was studying abroad. It may be pointed out that Union Health minister Harsh Vardhan sought strict action against those charging inflated prices for face masks.
His comments come in the wake of shortage of masks and sanitizers in the market and chemists charging higher than the normal price as the coronavirus scare rises. “Strict action should be taken against those black marketing the masks,” he tweeted in Hindi.