Covid-19 cases rising, Uttar Pradesh not to give more relaxation to shops

Neha Lalchandani | TNN | Updated: Apr 26, 2020, 07:22 IST

Teele Wali Masjid wears a deserted look on the first day of the holy month of Ramzan during the lockdown in Lucknow on Saturday

Teele Wali Masjid wears a deserted look on the first day of the holy month of Ramzan during the lockdown in Lu...Read More

LUCKNOW: The ministry of home affairs’ concessions to shopkeepers, allowing them to open up under specific conditions, will not be implemented in UP for the time-being.
Sources said that the state government has already given relaxation for various industries and essential goods shops to function and will not be making any more concessions at this point of time.
“It is crucial for UP to contain the number of Covid-19 cases. There are already 19 such districts where there are 20 or more cases. Three cases also surfaced in Prayagraj, where there had not been any new case for some days. The government has already permitted shops selling essential goods, like groceries and medicines, and 11 kinds of industries to function and will not be permitting any more to open up at this point. The situation will be reviewed in a few days,” said a senior government official.
On Saturday, Sant Kabir Nagar district was added to a prior list of 18 districts for which nodal officers have been appointed. Additional chief secretary Awanish Awasthi said that the decision was taken after the CM reviewed the lockdown situation.
“Nodal officers have been appointed for this district as well and have been asked to go there at the earliest,” he said. The nodal officers for each of the districts, one from the administration, a senior police personnel and one from the health department have been asked to stay in their respective districts for at least a week to assess the lockdown situation, condition of quarantine shelters, food distribution mechanism, preparedness at hospitals etc.
The state has about 389 hotspots from where even one case has been reported, which are completely sealed and no activity is permitted. Only health workers, sanitization staff and doorstep delivery personnel are allowed into these areas. Officials said that permission to open shops would not have been applicable to these hotspots or 19 sensitive districts as it is. Awasthi said that about 90-95% Covid-19 cases have been reported from the hotspots but the CM has been clear that even in districts where no fresh cases have been reported, no leniency in the lockdown will be permitted.