Smokers and drinkers across Mumbai are paying thousands of rupees to trusted bootleggers, sources, and neighbourhood paanwallahs for their daily fix of nicotine and alcohol during the 21-day national lockdown to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic that has so far taken the lives of 29 Indians in the country — with Maharashtra itself accounting for nine of the lost lives.

Although most grocery stores in well-to-do neighbourhoods had their stock of cigarettes for the first few days of the lockdown, it was soon depleted, leaving smokers in a sticky spot without their daily fix of nicotine, given that the regular cigarette shops/paanwallahs are forced to remain closed during the lockdown. The non-availability of cigarettes has caused their price to sky rocket to a minimum of R500 for a pack of 20 sticks — which is almost double of what the MRP is (usually it is R330 for a pack).