This was the strictest ever lockdown — even petrol pumps were closed, milk parlours restricted and unlike previous lockdowns, few dared test the cops’ resolve to enforce it.
Sunday shutdown in Bhopal, Indore and Jabalpur — the three largest cities of Madhya Pradesh — brought back memories of the time ‘lockdown’ first became a household word exactly a year ago.
This was the strictest ever lockdown — even petrol pumps were closed, milk parlours restricted and unlike previous lockdowns, few dared test the cops’ resolve to enforce it.
Roads were barricaded, shops shut, hawkers weren’t around, and even milk parlours didn’t open in many localities in the three cities though the administration had allowed them to do business till 10am. Many medicine shops, too, remained closed though there was no restriction on them.
The previous evening, people crowded markets as if they were stocking up for a return of the lockdown days, though CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan has repeatedly spoken against lockdown, saying Covid-19 must be beaten without affecting economic activities.
“I am sure it’s a lockdown only for Sunday but you never know with the Covid numbers we are seeing. I am not taking any chances. In the beginning of the lockdown last year, we faced a lot of problems as it began for a ‘few days’ and then stretched on and on,” said Bhopal’s Dheeraj Pandey, who had bought a bagful of essentials. MP`s daily Covid count hit the year`s high of 1,322 on Sunday — averaging 942 cases in the past four days.
In Indore, religious places remained closed too. Morning and evening walkers did not come out of their homes as the administration restricted entry to public gardens.
In Jabalpur 1,435 people were fined for violating lockdown and 10 booked under section 188 IPC. In Bhopal, 185 cases were registered for lockdown violation, 1,260 people fined for not wearing masks and around Rs 1.32 lakh collected as spot fines. In Indore, however, violators were made to do squats.
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