Mumbai Unlock: Shops allowed to open till 10 pm, malls to remain shut

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Mumbai: With the Maharashtra government granting relaxations in COVID-19 curbs in many districts mainly for traders, the Mumbai civic body on Monday also decided to allow all shops to remain open till 10 pm on all days and okayed resumption of shooting for films and television serials besides sports activities. The new guidelines were issued by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner I S Chahal on Monday night.

However, the order is silent on allowing commoners to travel in suburban trains despite Mumbai reporting a low number of new COVID-19 cases. Mumbai reported 259 new cases and nine deaths on Monday, which raised the overall case-load to 7,35,366 and the count of fatalities to 15,908, as per the Maharashtra health department. All the shops and establishments under the BMC limits can now remain open till 10 pm on all days in a week, however, restaurants and hotels can function till 4 pm only, the order said.

The civic body also allowed all the indoor and outdoor games and sports clubs to operate except for swimming and other games where physical contact may take place. They can operate on all seven days as per regular timings, the order said. Shooting for films and television serials is also permitted in Mumbai. The civic body has warned of strict action if COVID-appropriate behaviour is not followed by people in public places.

The Maharashtra government on Monday evening announced further relaxations of coronavirus curbs in 25 districts showing a low positivity rate of the infection, extending the existing business timings of shops and allowing shopping malls to operate in these districts. Also, all government, as well as private offices, can operate with full capacity, the guidelines said. All shops and other establishments which are currently allowed to operate till 4 pm can now remain open till 8 pm and till 3 pm on Saturdays.