It has been a whole year since lockdown and there is no sign of termination of the coronavirus. In fact, the daily cases in Maharashtra breached the 50,000-mark and this has forced the state government to take necessary safety measures. In order to control the uprising scale of the cases, the government announced a list of restrictions, that includes night curfews and weekend lockdowns.
In the last 24 hours, the one-day rise blasted off the scale and breached 57,074 new cases. Talking about Maharashtra, its main city – Mumbai faced a higher single-day spike of 11,163 new cases and currently, the state is facing a tremendous wave of coronavirus as the state has 4,30,503 active cases. Unfortunately, Maharashtra is in big trouble as eight cities of this state ended being a part of the top 10 worst-affected districts in India.
COVID-19 Vaccine Cost Rs. 250 per Shot in Private Hospitals
What are the new instructions in Maharashtra?
The state is left with no choice but had to carry out a list of new restrictions that are being imposed in the state in order to break the chain of transmission.
According to the new rules, a night curfew has been imposed all across the state from 8 pm to 7 am and a weekend lock will be effective from 8 pm on Friday to 7 am on Monday. The gathering of five or more people in a group is also restricted and essential needs like medical services are exempt from this.
Shopping arcades, malls, bars, restaurants, and other eateries will remain open for take-aways and parcels. Shops that provide essential services like groceries are allowed to remain open during the curfew, even if the shop is in a mall. New orders have been issued for government offices that these premises are allowed to function with fifty percent staff and private companies have been strictly ordered to make their employees work from home until new orders arrive.
Places like temples or other religious places, indoor stadiums, amusement parks, gymnasiums, parks, beaches, salons, and beauty parlors will remain shut in order to cut off the COVID-19 chain. Theatres and drama institutions will also remain close, films and daily soap shooting is permitted but they have to follow all the necessary protocols mainly social distancing. On top of this, political rallies have also been banned.
Boost Your Immunity Against COVID-19 With Ayurvedic Methods
As usual, E-commerce business and the delivery of its products, industrial operations, construction-related activities, and farming have received a nod from the state government. Airlines and trains will run and function like usual as no new restrictions have been imposed, but the capacity of public transport has been slashed to fifty percent, and those who will violate such instructions, will undergo heavy penalty.
If a society is found with five or more COVID-19 cases then it will be declared a containment zone and if someone dares to violate this rule then the person would be charged with a fine up to Rs. 10,000.
List of essential services that will be allowed to function in Lockdown
Essential services include Groceries, vegetable shops, dairy booths, bakeries, hospitals, clinics, pharmacies, pharmaceutical companies, public transport like trains, taxis, autos, buses, transportation of goods, agricultural activities, e-commerce, delivery of essential items, services related to disaster management authorities.
Lockdown rules for public transport in Maharashtra
Minor instructions have been applied for public transport instead of a complete ban in this lockdown. Three people are allowed inside an Autorickshaw including a driver as a third person and two passengers. Buses are allowed full seating occupancy with no standing passengers. Wearing a mask is a major concern if you are traveling in public transport and if someone found without a mask or wearing it in an improper manner then that person will be fined Rs. 500. The fine will be the same for taxis too if the passenger or the driver is found guilty. It is mandatory for drivers of the vehicles to sanitize their vehicles after every trip.
COVID-19: Noida Police Invokes Section 144 Till April 30 In View of Festivals