Commissioner Secretary Industries & Commerce, Manoj Kumar Dwivedi, today conducted a surprise inspection of Industrial units at SIDCO Industrial Complex, Bari Brahmana, Samba to take stock of the implementation of guidelines prescribed by the Jammu and Kashmir Government to prevent the spread of COVID-19 .The Commissioner Secretary was accompanied by Director Industries and Commerce, Jammu Anoo Malhotra and General Manager District Industries Centre, Jammu Subha Mehta.Pertinently, Government has granted permission to 1646 industrial units till now to start their operations by strictly adhering to set Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) regarding COVID-19.As per the SOPs, the Department of Industries & Commerce shall conduct periodic inspection of units which have been granted permission to operate during the lockdown period to ensure that the units are complying with the social distancing norms, maintaining proper hygiene in the unit premises and wearing of face masks by its employees.The units inspected by the Commissioner Secretary on the occasion include Emcure Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Zuventus Pharmaceutical Ltd. and Medley Pharmaceuticals Limited.Speaking on the occasion, Diwedi reiterated that the provisions of SOPs including thermal screening, use of sanitizers by the workers, social distancing and wearing of face mask to effectively tackle the threat of COVID-19 must be adhered to.He expressed satisfaction over the compliance of the norms by the units set out under the SOPs.The unit holders apprised the Commissioner Secretary about their demands like permission to engage 100% manpower and issuance of individual e-passes for supervisory staff to ensure effective managerial controls.The unit holders further informed that operation of courier services is a very important factor in the supply chain of industrial units and steps must be taken to make them fully operational.Dwivedi stressed that the manufacturing industry is the backbone of the economy and all possible steps are being taken to put the industry back on the track.