A day after the Central Government announced an extension of the lockdown in the COVID-19 Containment Zones till June 30 and a phased re-opening of all activities outside containment zones, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra Government has also come up with its guidelines for the phase-wise opening of the lockdown.
The phase-wise opening is only with respect to the non-containment zones and will come into effect on June 1 and shall remain effective till to June 30.
Phase I (with effect from June 3):
i. Outdoor physical activities: Individual physical exercises like cycling jogging/running/walking shall be permitted on public open spaces including beaches, public/private playgrounds, grounds belonging to societies/institutions, gardens and promenades with following conditions. No activities will be permitted in indoor portion or indoor stadium.
The outdoor physical activities will be allowed between 5 am to 7 pm. No group activity will be permitted. However, children should be accompanied by an adult. People are advised to stay outdoors only for the purposes of physical activities for limited duration. People are permitted to use only nearby/neighbourhood open spaces. Long-distance travel will not be permitted. People are advised to avoid crowded open spaces, read the guidelines.
ii. Activities related to self-employed people like plumbers, electricians, pest-control and technicians with social distancing norms and usage of masks and sanitization.
iii. Garages to mend vehicles and workshops with prior appointments.
iv. All Government offices (excluding emergency, health & medical, treasuries, disaster management, police, NIC, food & Civil Supply, FCI, N.Y.K., Municipal Services who can operate at the levels as per the need) will function at 15% strength or minimum 15 employees which ever is possible)
Phase II (with effect from June 5):
i. All markets, market areas & shops, except malls and market complexes, are allowed to function on P1-P2 basis (shops on one side of the road/lane/passage to be opened on odd dates while shops on the other side on even dates) from 9 am to 5 pm with following conditions.
a. The use of trial rooms in the shops will not be permitted for clothes, apparels and similar items to prevent spread of infection. Similarly exchange policy and return policy will not be permitted.
b. The shopkeepers will be responsible for ensuring social distancing norms in the shops and are encouraged to take measures such as foot markings on the floor, token system, home delivery etc.
c. People are advised to walk/to use cycles for shopping purposes and to use nearby/neighbourhood markets as far as possible. Long-distance travel for non-essential items will not be permitted. Use of motorized vehicles for shopping will be strictly discouraged.
d. If any failure of social distancing is seen, then authorities will immediately close down such shops/markets.
ii. In taxi/cab aggregator (1+2), rickshaw (1+2), four-wheeler (1+2), two-wheeler (only rider) is permitted and only for essential activities.
Phase III (with effect from June 8):
All private offices can operate with up to 10% strength as per requirement, with remaining persons working from home. However, all the employers will take sensitisation programs to educate the employees to take adequate precautions on returning home so that vulnerable group especially the elderly is not infected.
Meanwhile, schools, colleges, educational training coaching institutions, metro rail, cinema halls, gymnasium, swimming pools, theatres, auditorium continue to be prohibited across the state. Religious places, barbershops, spas, shopping malls, hotels and restaurants are also prohibited.
The night curfew will be from 9 pm to 5 am except for essential activities and persons above the age of 65, pregnant women, children below the age of 10 are advised to stay home.
