Bhopal: Amid reports of people crowding shops to buy essentials, the municipal corporation is drawing circles at one-metre gaps outside shops for the customers to stand inside them and ensure that social distancing norm is maintained in view of the highly contagious coronavirus outbreak.
Even as authorities asked residents not to step out of their homes and assuring that essential supplies will not be affected, people rushed to the grocery shops to stock daily need goods. To ensure people do not jostle or stand close to each other, the civic body teams have drawn squares and circles with chalk in front of the shops selling essential commodities, said a BMC official. The initiative was taken at all the major markets of the city.
Every customer will have to move ahead to the next circle only after the previous person advances.Besides, the municipal team are also writing massage on sanitation and maintaining social distancing on the roads. Besides, the fogging is underway at several areas in the city.
BMC officials said the way the people started thronging the markets on Tuesday, the risk of their coming in contact with a large number of people was high. We thus decided to identify the spots around shops so that no one come in touch with other person and maintain required distance, and that there is no panic, said one of the team members.
The drive will be undertaken in all the major markets and vegetable shops. Several shop owners have also adopted a similar method to maintain social distancing.
They say it is not the sole responsibility of the government but they too have to ensure that people maintain should work for it.
BMC additional commissioner Rajesh Rathod said the idea of drawing circles outside shops is raise awareness about social distancing. The residents should not panic to come in touch with other person while buying vegetables and groceries and so this practice is being adopted, he added.
