Further relaxing the lockdown restrictions, the Maharashtra government on Tuesday decided to allow markets and shops to remain open for an additional two hours from July 9.
Markets and shops can now remain open from 9 am to 7 pm, an extension of two hours from the existing closing deadline of 5 pm, in non-containment zones.
Issuing the statement about the same, state government said, "Now in further relaxation with an objective to control/reduce crowding, the markets/shops will be permitted to open for 2 additional hours and can function from 9 am to 7 pm."
The statement added that other conditions/restrictions remain the same. It is further clarified that markets should be permitted to open on all 7 days. "It is emphasized that Market /Shop Owner Associations will use these additional relaxations to help the administration achieve the objective of controlling/reducing crowding in the markets," the statement further read.
In the municipal corporations in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, Pune, Solapur, Aurangabad, Malegaon, Nashik, Dhule, Jalgaon, Akola, Amravati and Nagpur, markets have been permitted to remain open on all seven days of the week, it said.
However, shops in these areas will function on alternate days.
"Now in further relaxation with an objective to control/reduce crowding, the markets/shops will be permitted to open for 2 additional hours and can function from 9 am to 7 pm," it stated.
"If any crowding or failure of social distancing norms is seen, then the authorities will immediately close down such markets/shops, the notification reads.
A day earlier the state government had allowed hotels and other entities providing accommodation services outside containment zones to reopen at 33 per cent of their capacity from July 8.
