PUNE: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) on Friday announced relaxation from weekend lockdown, paving the way for grocery, vegetables, dairy and other food stores to operate from 7am to 11am from this Saturday.
The announcement came after a meeting of the PMC officials and the elected members with state health minister Rajesh Tope.
Shops engaged in monsoon works and agriculture would also be allowed to operate in the PMC limits.
The PMC had earlier allowed only milk and medical stores to operate during the weekend lockdown (Friday 6pm to Monday 7am).
According to the new guidelines, opticians’ shops as well as meat and egg shops can function over the weekends.
Shops offering services to pets also can operate.
Pune collector Rajesh Deshmukh issued similar guidelines regarding weekend lockdown relaxation in rural areas.
The Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation is likely to decide on relaxation in the weekend lockdown on Saturday.
After Pune district’s Covid review meeting, Tope on Friday said the weekend lockdown relaxation for essential shops in the Pune civic limits was a unanimous decision of all elected representatives following the decline in cases.
Tope said though the district’s weekly positivity rate had declined to 11.
9%, it was still above the state average.
“The positivity rate will continue to fluctuate,” he said.
Tope said the lockdown-like restrictions across the state would be extended for 15 days and the chief minister would assess the situation of each district before any relaxations.
“The final decision would be taken by CM Uddhav Thackeray in consultation with the local authorities in the coming two-three days and things would be finalised ahead of June 1,” he said.
However, experts from the medical fraternity recommended that the state shouldn’t allow any super-spreader events such as political, social or religious gatherings for a couple of months.
Some even asked the state to “take things slow till December”.
Tope said it was a relief that Pune district’s curve was dipping.
“The daily cases have reduced to around 2,200 now,” he said.
Pimpri Chinchwad municipal commissioner Rajesh Patil said they were yet to take a decision on relaxing the weekend curbs.
“We might take a decision on Saturday,” he said.
In previous directives in April and May, the PMC had allowed online and on-call home delivery of food till 11pm.
All online food delivery apps were permitted.
The PMC had allowed domestic helps, cooks, caregivers and drivers to travel from 7 am to 10pm.
All these relaxations would continue.
Although there is a demand from all quarters to reduce the restrictions given the decline in cases, medical experts have cautioned against it, said state officials.
Dr Subhash Salunkhe, technical adviser to the state government, said the state has to go slow up to December.
Salunkhe recommends against major opening up till 60-80% of the vulnerable population has been vaccinated.
Dr Avinash Supe, chairman of the Covid death audit committee, said, “There shouldn’t be any hurry in resuming normalcy, else we may see a spurt again,” he said.
(With inputs from Piyush Bhusari)