PMC to redraw containment zone map after unlock phase 1 ends

PUNE: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has decided to continue with its current micro containment zone arrangement till the Unlock 1 phase ends on June 30 to curb the spread of coronavirus.

The Maharashtra government on Thursday decided to ease yet another set of curbs and allow salons and beauty parlours to reopen starting June 28 in red zones, but for select services. According to a notification, entry will be with prior appointment. Only select services like haircut, dyeing, waxing, threading will be allowed.
Besides, more flexibility in the use of taxis and autorickshaws, opening up of gyms and spas, and allowing offices to bring in 25-30% of staff are also measures currently under consideration. Pune is among the red zones in the state.
The PMC had 66 containment zones under its jurisdiction in Lockdown Phase 4. In the Unlock 1 phase that started in the state on June, the PMC made the first change in the containment zones the following day. The number of containment zones was brought down to 63.
The civic administration again updated the new zones under its jurisdiction on June 16. This time, the number of containment zones was increased from 66 to 73. The latest rearrangement was done on June 24, where one more micro containment zoning was established. As of now, the PMC has 74 micro containment zones under its jurisdictions.
“We had made an addition in the micro containment zones this week. One area, which had seen an increase in positive cases, was included in the micro containment zone list. No more addition is needed right now. We will stick to the current arrangement till June 30,” PMC commissioner Shekhar Gaikwad, told TOI.
Earlier, the PMC was changing the zones every fortnight. As per the new strategy, the PMC planned frequent changes in containment zones and was supposed to declare new zones on Friday.
“Compared to the order issued on Wednesday, there is hardly any change in the ground situation in terms of spike in the area-specific Covid-19 cases. We decided to continue with the present arrangements,” he said.
The PMC in its latest order declared areas such as Shrinathnagar, Shaktinagar and Panchashilnagar-Ghorpadigaon along BT Kawde Road as micro containment zones.
The PMC’s directives stated that the non-containment zones should not be barricaded. Once an area is out of the containment zone list, the barricades should also be removed.
The civic body had on June 2 allowed all types of shops in the non-containment zones to operate between 9am and 5pm. The timings were further increased on June 16 and the shops can now operate till 7pm. In the containment zones, shops selling essential items are only allowed to operate.