Industries are permitted to operate, according to the Government Order issued by the State Government, in Coimbatore and Tirppur districts from May 6.

In Coimbatore, Minister for Municipal Administration S.P. Velumani held a meeting on Monday with representatives of industrial and trade associations. As many as 42 representatives took part.

An official press release, issued after the meeting, said industries located in rural areas would start operations from May 6 and shops in these areas would be permitted to open. Those located in town panchayats with a population of more than 15,000 would be inspected by the District Collector and permitted to operate. In the case of shops, those without air conditioner and have space to maintain social distancing would be permitted to open. Industries, across sectors, located within Coimbatore Corporation limits do not have permission for operation yet.

The press release said 325 large-scale industries are located in rural areas in the district and 100 in the periphery of Coimbatore Corporation limits. No industrial or trade activity would be permitted within the containment zones. The units at SIDCO Industrial Estate can operate from May 6.

T. Rajkumar, chairman of Confederation of Indian Textile Industry, said the district administration and the Minister had assured complete support to the industries to operate.

According to Coimbatore District Small Industries Association president R. Ramamurthy, all micro, small and medium-scale enterprises (MSMEs) in the Corporation limits had sought permission to start operations. “The Minister has promised to take up the issue with the Chief Minister,” he said.

C.T. Narayanan of Coimbatore Builders and Contractors Association said the builders and contractors would commence works at construction sites from Wednesday. “The district administration has granted us permission to bring workers to the site once. They have also said the supervisors and staff do not need special permission to travel within the city and it will be enough if they produce their ID cards,” he said.

Another major demand placed by the industries was ensuring that the migrant workers remained here. They also wanted permission for inter-district movement of workers.

The association heads who participated in the meeting said the Minister had pointed out that the Central Government had said that the special train was only for those migrant workers who were not taken care of by the employers. In Coimbatore, most of the workers were taken care of by the employers.

In Tiruppur district, District Collector K. Vijayakarthikeyan said industries in rural areas would be permitted to operate from May 6. For those in urban areas, only export units would be permitted.

Regarding job working powerlooms, those linked to fabric exporters would be permitted to function. In the case of shops, only those permitted can open. The industries had decided to make necessary arrangements, as prescribed by the district administration, to check the health of the workers regularly. The units would have to make transport arrangements for the workers. The district administration would take a survey of migrant workers who wanted to return to their State.