Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday announced that shop timings will be increased from earlier deadline of 4 pm to 8 pm in districts that have reported dip in COVID-19 cases.
Thackeray was visiting flood-hit Sangli district, there while addressing press conference he said general public will not be allowed to travel by local trains as threat of COVID-19 third wave looms over us.
The state government will issue an order today with easing certain COVID-19 restrictions as COVID-19 have been on the decline for about a month now.
The government last week approved easing of curbs in 25 of 36 districts, including reopening of multiplexes and malls, extending hours of shops and restaurants along with permitting dine out on weekends.
The 25 districts where relaxations will be effective include Mumbai, Thane, Nashik and Nagpur where Covid-19 indicators like positivity rate and case growth rate are lower than the state’s average. The remaining 11 districts—Pune, Solapur, Sangli, Satara, Kolhapur, Raigad, Palghar, Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri, Beed and Ahmednagar—have a higher weekly positivity rate and case growth rate than the state average.
A decision on rolling back restrictions was taken in a meeting with the Covid task force chaired by chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on July 29.
Health minister Rajesh Tope who attended the meeting said shop timings will be extended from 4pm to 8pm and dining-in at bars and restaurants allowed for longer hours at 50% capacity. Non-essential shops as well as restaurants may be allowed to stay open till 4pm on Saturday. Sunday restrictions will continue. The guest limit for social and cultural events will also be increased.
Maharashtra on Sunday recorded 6,479 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the number of active cases to 78,962. Besides, 157 COVID-19 deaths were reported in the day, taking the number of total fatalities to 78,962.
