Cops ask Mumbaikars to not leave neighbourhood till July 15

Around 23,000 vehicles were seized between Sunday and Monday, leading to a dip in road traffic across the city. (Representational)

Days after it issued orders asking people to refrain from travelling more than 2 km from their homes for non-essential activities, exempting office-goers and those facing medical emergency, the Mumbai Police on Wednesday asked residents to restrict their movements to their “neighbourhood” till July 15.

Meanwhile, a 10-day lockdown was announced in Navi Mumbai and Panvel, starting from the midnight of July 3. On Tuesday, the municipal corporations of Thane, Mira Bhayander and Kalyan Dombivali had announced a complete lockdown for 10 days in lieu of the rising number of Covid-19 cases in their areas. With this, all satellite cities adjoining Mumbai will witness lockdown.

According to the order issued by the Mumbai Police, residents visiting markets, beauty parlours, barber shops and saloons, as well as going out for outdoor physical activity, should restrict their movement to their neighbourhood.

It reiterated that barring a few restrictions that have been relaxed between 9 pm to 5 am, as part of the state government’s ‘Mission Begin Again’ initiative, curfew will be in place during this time period in the city under Section 144 of the CrPC.

The order, however, set off panic in some parts of Mumbai, as people started flocking to shops to stock up on essentials in anticipation of a looming lockdown.

The panic led the police to clarify that there were no plans of imposing a lockdown. “This is purely an extension of the order issued under Section 144 of the CrPC that was enforced across the city after the lockdown was imposed. Whenever some minor changes have to be made, we issue new orders. In this particular case, people have been asked to restrict themselves to their neighbourhoods. Apart from that, the current rules continue,” Mumbai Police spokesperson DCP Pranaya Ashok said.

After it was observed that several people were travelling to various corners of the city without any essential work, the police had issued the 2-km radius restriction rule on Sunday. According to the rule, the police will seize all privately-owned vehicles that are found to have travelled beyond a 2-km radius from the houses of the owners for purposes other than going to office or availing medical services during emergencies. Those involved in essential services were also exempted from the rule.

Around 23,000 vehicles were seized between Sunday and Monday, leading to a dip in road traffic across the city.

As per the 10-day lockdown rules issued by the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation, only shops selling essential commodities, including grocery, milk and medical stores, will stay open. Residents have been asked to refrain from stepping out of their homes.