Noida eases corona curfew restrictions, allows optical shops to open with COVID protocols

Gautam Buddh Nagar Opticals' Association told the district administration that people are facing trouble due to the closure of optical shops.

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New Delhi: The Gautam Buddh Nagar administration on Wednesday (June 2) allowed optical shops to open with certain conditions in Noida and Greater Noida. These shops do not come under essential service category and hence, were closed since the corona curfew. 

The decision was taken following a request by the Gautam Buddh Nagar Opticals' Association to the district administration where they said people are facing trouble due to the closure of optical shops. The staff and owners in containment zones will not be allowed to enter the shops. 

Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Vandita Shrivastava said in an order, “Shop owner or staff from containment zone would be barred from entering the shops.”

“There has to be a 100 per cent compliance of Covid protocols like face cover/mask and availability of sanitiser in such shops besides social distancing and other measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19,” PTI quoted her as saying. 

All optical shop owners and staff members are mandatorily required to have 'Aarogya Setu' app on their mobile phones, the order added. “Violation of any condition would result in cancellation of the permission to open shop and legal proceedings would be initiated against the shop owner under the National Disaster Management Act, 2005 and Section 188 of the India Penal Code,” the order read. 

Earlier, the Uttar Pradesh government extended the corona curfew relaxations in 61 districts with less than 600 active cases of the coronavirus, allowing shops and markets outside the containment zones to open for five days a week. 

However, in the remaining districts including Gautam Buddh Nagar, Meerut, Lucknow, Saharanpur, Varanasi, Ghaziabad, no such relaxations were applicable. Only essential services are allowed in these districts. 

On Tuesday, Gautam Buddh Nagar recorded 843 active cases. 

(With inputs from PTI)