The Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) has appealed to the government to ease the smart lockdown. RCCI President Mohammad Nasir Mirza in a statement on Monday said that the business community has been most affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The people in the hotel industry in particular have been hit hard. Restaurants, wedding halls and marquees should be allowed to open businesses under standard operating procedures (SOPs), he demanded. There are thousands of people whose job is associated with these wedding halls and restaurants, he added. Wedding halls should be opened under specific /restricted number of guests and shall be allowed under SOPs, he appealed. At the same time, the tourism sector and related industry has also faced big losses. He said that lockdown policy should be formulated in collaboration with stakeholders. “We have to make a policy based on the ground realities. Weekly off should be abolished and daily shopping hours be increased,” he added. Less working hours increase the rush in the markets, he said. “Like the rest of the world, we have to run business life along with Covid,” he maintained.