City Corporation authorities are contemplating restriction of business hours of shops and business establishments along important streets due to apparent large-scale violation of social distancing norms.

Officials of revenue and the Tiruchi Corporation are understood to have stepped up surveillance on shops and business houses located on various streets such as Big Bazaar Street, Singarathope, NSB road, Chinnakadari Street, Peria Kammala Street and others to check the efficacy of social distancing norms among the customers and traders. They noted that though the percentage of awareness on wearing face mask had gone up, many customers and a section of traders continued to violate the social distancing norms, thereby giving room for the spread of the COVID–19 virus. It has been found that unmindful of the consequences, a section of traders too failed to impose the social distancing condition while transacting business.

“It is paramount to follow all conditions imposed by the government while carrying out business transaction. We have noted that many customers and traders continue to defy the norms. If they fail to cooperate with the efforts to contain the spread of the virus, we will resort to reducing the business hours in select areas,” a senior official of the Tiruchi Corporation told The Hindu.

However, it would all depend upon the ground situation and cooperation of traders. Hence, the traders and customers should understand the situation and extend full cooperation to the officials in containing the spread of the virus, the official said, observing that a few COVID-19 clusters had emerged in the city. Steps were being taken to minimise the cases.

Meanwhile, the time restriction imposed by the Karur district administration on business hours of shops and business establishments got operational from Sunday. As per the order, traders including textile and grocery merchants in the Karur municipal limit should close their shops at 2 p.m.

The district administration has resorted to this measure following the failure of a section of traders and customers to adhere to the social distancing norms and rise in number of cases.