On Tuesday night, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day lockdown in the entire country effective from midnight to deal with the spread of coronavirus, allowing only essential services to work.
On Wednesday, the number of coronavirus cases in India rose to 562 while the death toll due to this viral infection was revised down to nine from 10 after the second death in Delhi turned out to be negative.
After PM Modi announced the lockdown, anxious people made a beeline for grocery stores. panicky Mumbaikars and others across the state hotfooted to shops and stores to stock up essentials for the next three weeks.
This was a triple whammy for Maharashtra in past three days with the Sunday 'janata curfew', Monday's total lockdown followed by a nationwide lockdown, coming as it did on the eve of the state New Year, Gudi Padva (March 25). In many parts of the city, and its suburbs, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Aurangabad, and other towns, chaos reigned as hordes of anxious people trooped out armed with cloth bags to buy foodstuffs.
After lock down was announced, government released a list of essential services which will work during the lock down period.
So here's a list of essential services which will remain open/closed:
According to Central government's notification, all central government offices will remain closed. Except those related to defence, paramilitary, treasury, public utilities like petroleum, CNG and PNG, disaster management, power generation and transmission, post offices.
Even all state government offices will remain closed. Except police, home guards, civil defence, fire brigade, disaster management, prisons, district administration and treasury, electricity, water, sanitation and essential services related to municipal bodies.
All commercial and private establishments will be closed down. Except rations shops and shops dealing with food, groceries, fruits and vegetables, dairy and milk booths, meat and fish and animal fodder.
Industrial establishments will also remain closed. Except manufacturing units of essential commodities, production units that require continuous process after obtaining state government permission.
Air, rail, road transport will remain suspended. But transportation for essential goods has not been suspended.
Hospitals and medical establishments in both public and private sector, chemist and medical equipment shops, laboratories, clinics, nursing homes, ambulance services will remain open.
Also open are
- Banks, insurance offices, ATMs
- Print and electronic media
- Delivery of essential goods like food, medicines, medical equipment through e-tailers
- Petrol pumps, LPG, petroleum and gas retail and storage outlets
- Capital and debt market services notified by SEBI
- Cold storage, warehousing services
- Private security services
All educational institutions, research centres, coaching institutes and all religious places to remain closed for public. Even for funerals, not more than 20 persons are permitted.
Hotels, homestays, lodges and motels, which are accommodating tourists stranded due to lockdown will remain open.
