The state government issued detailed guidelines with regard to the lockdown exit on Sunday. This is in pursuance with the orders of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) about states introducing specific instructions for lifting the curbs that have been in existence since March 25.
The guidelines issued by the state will be effective from June 1 to June 30. The lockdown itself shall remain in place till June 30, within specific instructions issued by the government. All these instructions come with the rider that they shall be open to modification given the specific circumstances of an area.
As per these instructions, in a graded phase, religious places, hotel, restaurants and other hospitality services and shopping malls shall be open from June 8.
In the second phase, operational in July, and for which the state shall introduce specifications later on, schools, colleges, educational institutions, are proposed to be opened.
Phase three of the lockdown relaxation shall see operation of international flights (in keeping with the guidelines issued by the MHA), cinema halls, gymnasiums, swimming pools, entertainment parks, theatres, bars and auditoriums, assembly halls and the like.
Restriction of movements shall be between 9 pm and 5 am, and any violations of the same shall attract action under Section 144 of the CPC.
In containment zones, only sanitation work, health services and doorstep delivery shall be operational. Contact tracing and house-to-house surveillance shall also be intensified in such zones.
The guidelines also specify that a containment zone shall cover 250 metres or an entire locality, whichever is less where a single COVID-19 case has been reported. In case of more than one case, the zone shall be extended to a radius of 500 metres. If a case is reported from an apartment block, the entire complex shall be deemed containment zone, and in case of societies with multiple apartment blocks reporting cases from more than a block, all places of public use such as parks, gymnasiums and banquet halls shall be sealed off.
Any office buildings where a single case is reported shall be sealed off immediately for sanitation for a period of 24 hours.
In rural areas, a revenue village with even a single case shall be considered a containment zone. However, farmlands, workers on these lands and agricultural equipment shall be permitted to function.
For shops, which shall be open from 9 am to 9 pm, the instructions mandate use of masks and gloves, and also that any person not wearing masks shall not be eligible for shopping. Different markets shall be opened on different days, but no wholesale markets (mandis) shall be operational.
All staff working in salons shall be required to wear face shields in addition to the other necessary protective gear.
Similarly, private nursing homes shall be allowed to operate only after following all precautionary measures.
Taxis and two wheelers shall be permitted operation only if they carry the prescribed limit of passengers and these wear face masks. Roadway buses shall be permitted to function at capacity, but no standing passengers shall be allowed on the same. Inter and intra state travel of people and goods shall not face any barriers.
The guidelines also suggest that the Arogya Setu and the Arogya Kavach app be downloaded.
