Shops can open only for 4 hours

TNN | May 4, 2020, 07:34 IST

Ludhiana: Deputy commissioner Pradeep Kumar Agrawal on Sunday clarified that as Ludhiana falls in the red zone, the shops selling essential commodities would open for counter sale from 7am to 11am only. He said shopkeepers would be allowed to do home delivery only after 11am.
The deputy commissioner informed that a total of 3,078 samples have been taken in the district so far, out of which reports of 2,385 samples have been received, and 2,259 are negative. He informed that 111 cases of Ludhiana district and 15 from other districts (all undergoing treatment in Ludhiana) have been reported positive so far, and the total number of active cases is 99, as seven patients have been cured, and unfortunately five have passed away.
He informed that two deaths were reported in Ludhiana on Saturday — one patient was from Phagwara, and one from Basti Jodhewal area of Ludhiana. Both were undergoing treatment at Dayanand Medical College & Hospital (DMCH). He informed that so far, five patients from district Ludhiana, and two from other districts have passed away.
He further said, “In a piece of good news, the wife of deceased ACP Anil Kohli has been declared as cured by the health department, as two of her consecutive reports have been negative.”
Agrawal informed that so far, 392 persons have come from other states and their testing was going on. He said most of their reports have been received, while some were pending, which would come by Sunday evening from the labs at Patiala and PGI Chandigarh. He informed that as per the capacity, the health department had started sending samples for testing at DMCH, and in the coming days, the results of reports would be received in a comparatively lesser time.
He informed that the contact tracing of all positive cases was going on in full swing, and on an average, more than 200 samples were collected and sent for testing from Ludhiana daily. As per the orders of the Punjab government, the curfew/lockdown has been extended till May 17, and clarified that timings of all exemptions already given to residents such as opening of shops selling essential commodities from 7am to 11am would continue till May 17. He informed that shops can do home delivery only from 11am to 7pm. Shopkeepers will have to strictly ensure that all their workers wear masks, there is no rush of people, and they should stand at a 2-metre distance from each other. If the shopkeeper fails to ensure this, then their permission would be cancelled.
He further clarified that people who want to visit those shops do not require any pass from 7am-11 am, but they can commute only by foot. He said that they would not be allowed to use any vehicle to get essential commodities, and if any person is found doing so, strict action would be taken against them. He appealed to the shopkeepers to ensure that all guidelines issued by the Punjab government are strictly complied with. He also appealed to residents that only one person goes out to buy essential commodities, and they should wear masks, wash hands properly, and also clean the items purchased from those shops.
The deputy commissioner also clarified that curfew passes of essential commodities and other important categories (which were valid till May 3) would automatically be valid till May 17.