City shops to remain open till 7 pm, restaurants till 10 pm; no relaxations in PCMC, Pune rural areas

Ajit Pawar said shops in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) areas will be permitted to operate till 7 pm, while restaurants can function till 10 pm. Libraries, malls and reading rooms will be allowed to function with 50 percent capacity.

Essential and non-essential shops will remain open till 7 pm in Pune city from Monday, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said after chairing a Covid-19 review meeting here on Friday.

Pawar said shops in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) areas will be permitted to operate till 7 pm, while restaurants can function till 10 pm. Libraries, malls and reading rooms will be allowed to function with 50 percent capacity. Theatres and cinema halls, however, will not be opened, and a decision regarding them will be taken after a week, he added.

Areas falling under the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) and Pune rural jurisdiction, however, will continue to be under the present restrictions for another week, Pawar said.

The decision has been taken as per the weekly review and classification system, put in place last week. At present, Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad have been classified in Level 3, while Pune rural is in Level 4.

From June 14, the PMC will see Level-2 restrictions, while the PCMC and Pune rural will continue with Level 3 and 4 curbs respectively.

“At present, the weekly positivity in the PMC areas is 5.5 percent. It’s expected to further go down in two days. Considering this, it’s been decided to give some additional relaxations to people and businesses in the PMC area. The positivity rates in Pimpri-Chinchwad and Pune rural are 5.8 percent and 12 percent respectively. So following the experts’ advice, we have decided to remain cautious and continue the present level of restrictions for another week,” said Pawar.

He added that medical experts have advised the government against sudden opening up of cities and towns.

“The promised relaxations in the PMC areas will only come into effect if the weekly positivity rate goes below 5 per cent by Sunday,” said Pawar.

As per the government notification on June 6, Level 2 involves the following relaxations. However, the administration may decide to continue with some of the restrictions, especially those involving indoor activities, such as theatres and cinema halls.

– Stay updated with the latest Pune news. Follow Express Pune on Twitter here and on Facebook here. You can also join our Express Pune Telegram channel here.

Level-2 relaxations:

  • Restaurants will operate at 50 percent dining capacity and can remain open till 10 pm.
  • Public transport vehicles will ply with 100 percent capacity (no standing passengers).
  • Marriage ceremonies can take place with 50 percent capacity of the function hall.
  • Parks, private and government offices can function regularly. Indoor games will be permitted from 5 am to 9 pm, while outdoor games can take place the entire day.
  • Shootings for films etc. will happen at regular timings and there will be a 50 percent cap on gatherings.
  • No cap on funerals.
  • Society meetings and elections will happen with 50 percent capacity.
  • Construction, agriculture, e-commerce activities can continue as per regular timings.
  • Gyms and salons can operate at 50 percent capacity with prior appointments.
  • Cargo movement can happen sans hindrance.
  • Inter-district travel will be regular and manufacturing will be allowed in full scale.

Source: Read Full Article