Calling it ‘a crucial decision for the country’, businesses have called on the government to re-open cinema halls and restart metro services in the next phase of lockdown relaxations. The Union home ministry is set to announce its fresh guidelines for ‘Unlock 3.0’, which is to start from Friday, August 1.
The expert committee recommendation submitted to the government by business chamber FICCI has also suggested that it is time to consider easing prohibitions in aviation, sports, schools and tourism sectors. “As the world continues to battle the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become clear that a strategy of long-term total lockdown is simply unsustainable for most economies,” the note says, adding, “As lockdown orders continue to be enforced in many parts of the country, businesses and livelihoods are under tremendous pressure due to the collapsed demand, layoffs, and wage reductions.”
Some of the main suggestions involve areas like travel, tourism and hospitality, a sector considered the worst-hit due to the lockdown. It has called on states to come out with a uniform set of regulations for the re-opening of the tourism industry, allow movement at places of tourist interests and remove the ban on restaurant and bar service in hotels, provided guidelines are followed.
The memo calls for changing the guest cap of 50 for weddings and other banquet functions, calling on the government to link it to the size of a venue rather than a blanket number like 50. “Instead of restricting guests to an absolute number like 50 for any banqueting event, it should be proportionate to the size of the banquet hall (after) allowing for social distancing,” says the FICCI note, adding that curfew timings should be relaxed as many functions depend on muharat which may vary. Besides ‘self-regulation’, it has called for added precautionary measures at buffets, like sneeze guards and a single server for each buffet item to avoid multiple touch points.
For metro rail, the business body has called for starting service with 50 per cent capacity initially, with no stoppage at stations situated in containment zones. Recommendations include thermal scanning, contactless ticketing as well as reserved seating, regular cleaning by hypocholorite solution and alternating air-conditioning with fresh-air ventilation.
Ficci has also called for restarting of sporting activities, starting with low-risk “contactless” sports like cricket, shooting, tennis, badminton, archery etc. “To enable the nation to maintain a fit and healthy lifestyle and increase immunity, sports retailers should be facilitated to allow uninterrupted supply of sports and fitness products,” the business body recommends, including in containment zones, to help citizens remain “physically and mentally fit”.
However, the recommendations did not specifically call for the re-opening of gyms and spas, considered high-risk. It also suggested “considering” reopening of schools and other educational institutions, but left it to the authorities to decide on it depending on local Covid situations. Until then, it has submitted to the government a remote delivery execution framework for schools to continue with online education.
