PUNE: The Pune police will implement the night-time curbs on movements from 10.30pm from Monday, while their Pimpri Chinchwad counterparts clarified that the restrictions would be enforced from 6pm.
Commissioner of police (CP), Pune, Amitabh Gupta told TOI on Saturday, “We shall implement the night-time curbs on movements from 10.30pm instead of 10pm.
This is because we are giving grace time of 30 minutes to enable people to reach home after visiting restaurants, food courts and bars, which will close by 10pm from June 14, according to the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC)’s order.” Gupta said commuters could travel from the PMC areas to the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) limits or vice versa till 10.30pm.
“If caught by the police at nakabandi points/checkposts, people travelling with valid reasons would be allowed to travel.
People found travelling without logical reasons would be fined (after 10.30pm),” he said.
Additional commissioner of the Pimpri Chinchwad police Ramnath Pokale told TOI, “The night-time curbs on movements would come into force from 5pm, according to the PCMC order, but we are giving grace time of an hour to enable people to reach home by 6pm.
We shall fine people if they are found travelling or venturing out without valid reasons after 6pm.” Joint commissioner of Pune police Ravindra Shisve said, “We shall ensure that people maintain Covid appropriate behaviour from Sunday.
Our beat marshals will intensify patrolling and make good use of the public-address system to create awareness to avoid crowding at commercial establishments and marketplaces to contain the spread of the virus in the second wave though the number of positive cases has declined in the city.” Shisve said the shops had remained open till 4pm for more than a week.
“The PMC order issued on June 11 states that the closing time for all essential and non-essential shops, places holding entertainment, political and social functions and outdoor and indoor sports activities would be extended till 7pm from Monday.
But we do not anticipate rush or overcrowding at these places as unlock has started and is settling down.
We feel that the crowd will get distributed in shops and malls in different areas evenly.
We hope that the law abiding Puneites will continue to maintain Covid appropriate behaviour.” He said though shops, malls and other commercial establishments would shut by 7pm from Monday, people can visit restaurants, food courts and bars till 10pm.
“We have no objection if people are visiting/travelling to these places after 7pm.
We are implementing the PMC order.
The guidelines issued by the civic body should be implemented by the public because it is for their own benefit and that of others,” he said.
Shisve said the night-time curbs on movements would start from Monday at 10.30pm.
“There will be no relevance of nakabandi points during the daytime.
But there will be nakabandi points at important places during the night to ensure that people are following timings of returning home,” he said.
The decision to offer more relaxations in the PMC limits was taken on Friday after deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar conducted a review meeting.
He had said the Pune civic areas warranted relaxations mentioned for cities categorised as level 2 under the state’s “break the chain” mandate because the PMC’s weekly positivity rate was less than 5%.
The Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) decided to continue with the level 3 restrictions till next Friday.
The only relaxation offered by the PCMC on Friday was allowing reading rooms, libraries and coaching classes for competitive exams to reopen at 50% capacity.
No relaxations would be offered in the Pune rural areas next week, as advised by experts.
The weekly Covid positivity rate was 9.6% there on Friday.
Night curbs from 10.30pm in PMC areas, 6pm in PCMC limits
