Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray decided against imposing a complete lockdown on the state. However, a weekend lockdown has been ordered to check the spike in Covid-19 cases.
The weekend curfew will be valid from 8 pm on Friday to 7 am on Monday. Only essential services will be allowed on Saturdays and Sundays.
Apart from the weekend lockdown, strict restrictions will be in force from Monday 8 pm onwards, Minority Affairs Minister and NCP leader Nawab Malik told reporters after an emergency Cabinet meeting, which was called on Sunday and chaired by CM Thackeray.
Meanwhile, night curfew from 8 pm to 7 am and other strict curbs like a ban on gatherings of five or more throughout the day will also be in place. Office employees will have to work from home. Malls, restaurants, bars and places of worship will be closed. Restaurants will be permitted to operate only for take-away and home delivery.
Maharashtra Minister Aslam Shaikh said that night curfew will continue and prohibitory orders issued under Section 144 will be in force during the day time for the week. “Apart from the weekend lockdown, strict restrictions will be in force from 8 pm tomorrow, under which shopping malls, bars, restaurants, small shops will remain open only for take-away and parcels. Government offices will be allowed to function only at 50 percent of their capacity,” he said.
Industries and production sector, vegetable markets will function with Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs) and construction sites will operate if there is an accommodation facility for workers, he added.
Theatres and drama theatres will be shut, while film and television shoots will continue if there is no crowding. Parks and playgrounds will also be closed, Shaikh said.
Religious places will have to follow SOPs, Malik said. Meanwhile, rules to control crowding in vegetable markets will be introduced. There will be no new restrictions on traffic but public transport will run at 50 percent capacity.
Mumbai city guardian minister Aslam Shaikh also told reporters that work from home will be encouraged for offices, except for insurance, mediclaim, electricity and civic offices. Essential services have been exempted from the existing night curfew, he said.
On Sunday, Maharashtra reported as many as 57,074 fresh Covid-19 cases, the highest single-day spike so far since the pandemic started. According to the state government’s data, the active number of covid cases in the state stands at 4,30,503. With the 222 deaths in the last 24 hours the COVID-19 death has mounted to 55,878.