April 30, 2021
With enraging the second wave of infections, these apex rural bodies in several villages across India – the gram Panchayats – have banned the sale of cold items and prohibited entry of outsiders. This has also impacted the sales of FMCG items, ranging from chips and curd to fruit juices and biscuits as working hours of shops have been curtailed and entry of outsiders prohibited.
Hence, soft drink and ice cream companies that were beginning to cash in on improving rural sales have suddenly found themselves staring at this roadblock.
Though a misconception, the elders in villages are of the view that cold products increase the risk of contracting infections. Any business related to cold items will not be allowed in the village as stated in one notice and there is only one entry point and one exit point and outsiders will not be allowed. Villages have put on that shops will be allowed to open only from 7 am to 9 am. Violators will be fined Rs. 500.
Business is down by 90%. The current situation in rural India is a far cry from the final few months of last year when demand in rural and semi-urban India was outstripping that of urban India on the back of strong government support, reverse migration of labour, and good agriculture.
Unlike the first wave, the virus has not spared rural India this time. There are several clusters that have high rates of infections,” said Subhashis Basu, COO at Prataap Snacks
Although there isn’t a complete lockdown and demand is still higher in rural than urban, sales have slowed down.