15-day lockdown style curfew in Maharashtra from 8 PM today, only essential services allowed

NEW DELHI: A 15-day long lockdown-style curfew will come into force from 8 PM in Maharashtra from Wednesday in order to curb the spread of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The curfew will remain in force till May 1. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray made the announcement on Tuesday that a 15-day long 'lockdown' style restrictions starting 8 pm onwards on April 14 till May 1 will be imposed in the state to ''break the chain of the coronavirus'' that has gripped the state. 

“The curfew, which excludes essential services, will come into effect from 8 pm on Wednesday,” Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said in his address via social media to people of the state. 

Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), dealing with gatherings and assembly of people, will be in force till the “lockdown-like” restrictions are in place, he said. The fresh curbs build on the existing weekend and night curfews in the state.

He refrained from terming the new curbs, announced on a day when Maharashtra recorded 60,212 fresh coronavirus cases and 281 fatalities, as a lockdown. There is a shortage of medical oxygen and beds and the demand for Remdesivir, a key COVID-19 drug, has increased in Maharashtra, he said, adding the Centre should help supply oxygen for coronavirus patients in the state by using Air Force planes.

“The war against coronavirus has begun once again,” he said. There is a severe strain on Maharashtra’s health infrastructure due to a spike in COVID-19 cases, he added.

Here’s what has been exempted and what’s not

-Section 144 will remain imposed on the state.

-All establishments, public places, activities, services shall remain suspended. However, services and activities mentioned in 'essential category' have been exempted from the restrictions and their operations will remain unrestricted.

-Mumbai's suburban trains and city buses will continue to run, but commutes will be permitted for those in the designated 'essential services'.

-All film shootings remain banned until April 30. 

-Religious places of worship will remain shut across the state.

-Barbershops and salons to remain shut.

-Weddings will be allowed with only 25 guests and funerals with the earlier norm of 20 mourners

-Private vehicles can ply for the purpose of emergency and essential services if they meet the criteria

-All restaurants, bars, street food sellers, except those in-house on-premises of hotels and other designated locations, will remain closed, though home delivery shall be permitted.

-Food markets and retail outlets shall be allowed with staggered working hours, while clubs, gyms, amusement/water parks, swimming pools, beaches, gardens, and other public places, salons, barbershops, etc shall be closed for the public.

-E-commerce to be allowed only for delivery of essential goods

-All shops, malls and complexes to remain shut. Public places like beaches, gardens and parks to remain closed. 

-Autorickshaws and taxis can ply with driver plus only two passengers, private vehicles shall be allowed for only emergency/essential purposes, while all manufacturing, trade, banking, commercial, e-commerce, marketing and related activities shall continue, all state/Central government and essential private offices including law firms, shall work but with only 50 per cent capacity.

-In all categories, the government has mandated adherence to strict Covid Appropriate Behaviour and violators would be slapped with hefty fines/penalties and termination of their services till the end of the Centre`s pandemic orders. 

Essential services exempted: 

-Hospital, diagnostic centres, clinics, vaccinations, medical insurance offices, pharmacies, pharmaceutical companies, other medical and health services including supporting the manufacturing and distributing units along with their dealers, transport and supply chain. Manufacturing and distribution of vaccines, sanitisers, masks medical equipment, their ancillaries, raw material units and support services. 

-Veterinary services, animal care shelters and pet food shops. 

-Groceries, vegetables shops, fruits vendors, diaries, bakeries, confectionaries, all type of food shops

-Cold storage and warehousing services 

-Public Transport: Airplanes, trains, taxis, autos and public buses

-Services related to the functioning of offices of Diplomats of various countries

-Pre-monsoon activities by local authorities 

-All public services by local authorities 

-Reserve Bank of India and services designated by RBI as essential 

-All offices of SEBI recognised market infrastructure institutions such as Stock Exchange, depositories, clearing corportations etc and other intermediaries registered with SEBI

-Service required for restoration/maintenance of teelcom services 

-Transport of Goods 

-Water supply services 

-Agriculture-related activities

-Export-Import of all commodities 

-E-Commerce (For essential goods and services)

-Accredited Media 

-Petrol Pumps and Petroleum related products, including offshore/onshore production 

-All cargo services 

-Data centres / Cloud Services / IT Services supporting critical infrastructure and services 

-Government and Private Security Services. 

-Electric and gas supply services.

- ATM's. 

-Postal Services. 

-Ports and related activities. 

-Custom 1-louse Agents/ Licensed Multi-Modal Transport Operators associated with movement of vaccines/ lifesaving drugs/ pharmaceutical products. 

-Units producing raw material/ packaging material for any essential services.

-Units that are engaged in the production of materials for the impending rainy season for individuals as well as for organisations.

-Any Services designated as essential services by the local disaster management authority.