Maharashtra Government allowed liquor shops to be opened in the state except in the COVID-19 containment zones from Monday morning amid Lockdown 3.0 enforced amid to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the state has reported liquor sale of 16.10 lakh litres from 3,543 shops worth Rs 62.55 crore.
On Tuesday, Maharashtra government has issued clarification on the lockdown measures for containment of COVID-19 in the state.
"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, etc. is providing counter-productive and it is seen to be attracting crowd due to uncertainty," an official release said.
It states that all authorities have been asked to ensure that all shops/markets which are allowed to remain open as per the order dated May 2 and May 3 shall remain open to their full operational timing and days.
"If there is need of regulating such shops/markets, it is only authorised to be done by - Municipal Commissioners of Corporation of MMR and PMR and Nagpur, Nagpur, Aurangabad, Nashik; or Collectors in rest of the areas," the release said.
It said detailed guidelines of demarcation of containment zone have been issued.
Once the boundary of the containment is determined by the Municipal Commissioner or District Collector, it will not be allowed to change or alter the boundaries by any other authority other than Municipal Commissioners or District Collectors.
It said that all other district authorities will assist municipal commissioners and district collectors to perform and discharge the responsibilities.
Moreover, Maharashtra on Tuesday reported 841 new COVID-19 cases and 34 deaths, taking the overall case count to 15,525 and the number of fatalities to 617 so far, a Health department official said.
(With inputs from Agencies)
