Mumbai: Three days after the release of revised coronavirus lockdown 3.0 guidelines, the Maharashtra government on Tuesday clarified that all shops and markets, which are allowed to open, will remain open to their stipulated operational days and timing between 7 am and 7 pm.
The government has directed the local administration not to lay down any other conditions and curbs in their functioning as permitted under the revised lockdown 3.0 guidelines issued on May 2 and 3. Issuing the clarification, Chief Secretary Ajoy Mehta said, ‘’It is very necessary to ensure smooth and seamless availability of supplies.
Regulating the markets and shops with various restrictions such as specific days, timings, entry points is proving counter-productive and it is seen to be attracting crowd due to uncertainty. Therefore, all authorities should ensure that all shops and markets will remain open between 7 am and 7 pm as permitted under the revised guidelines,’’ said Mehta.
However, the government has said that municipal commissioner of corporations of Mumbai Metropolitan Region and Pune Metropolitan Region and Nagpur, Aurangabad and Nashik and collectors in rest of the areas have been authorized to regulate days and timing of shops and markets if there is a need.
In a related development, the state government on Tuesday released a revised order on the presence of employees in its offices.
In view of the increasing number of coronavirus positive patients in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad and Malegaon Municipal Corporation areas, the government has said only 5% of employees will be present in its offices while in rest of Maharashtra 100 per cent presence is mandatory for officers with the rank of deputy secretary and above, and for other employees 33% presence.
On the lines of Central government, the State government has asked officers and employees to download Aarogya Setu app to find out their medical status and thereby report to offices to avoid coronavirus infection.
Further, it will be binding on government officers and employees to wear a mask during the office time, wash hand frequently by soap and sanitizer and maintain three ft distance between two employees.
