Pune Gets Locked Down After 8PM As Coronavirus Cases Surge; But Confusion Among Shop Owners, Citizens

The Pune Municipal Corporation and the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation, after hours of confusion, finally issued prohibitory orders mandating that all public places be shut at 8 pm.

All Public Places To Shut at 8 pm

The Maharashtra government, under its ‘Mission Begin Again’ has issued directives that effective from March 27 all public places to remain closed from 8 pm to 7 am. Failing to comply with the same will lead to a penalty of Rs 1000.

The existing timings stated that the restaurants and bars were to close for dine-in service at 10 pm, and these amendments in the timings were not brought out by the district collector or the municipal commissioner of Pune till Sunday afternoon.

The procedure is that after receiving guidelines from the government, prohibitory orders using the Disaster Management Act, 2005 and Epidemic Diseases Prevention Act, 1897 are issued by the district collector, post which the guidelines for the urban parts of the district are issued by the PMC and PCMC. Lastly, the police commissioners of respective areas bring out executive orders using Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Restaurant Owners Are Extremely Unhappy & Worried

Restaurant owners has expressed their anguish over the timing rule as according to them, most of the business happens only after 7 pm and closing a restaurant at 8 pm as per the order is disastrous to them as during the timings allowed the business is minimal.

Restaurant owner Shetty said that the pandemic already has them in troubled waters and the new time restrictions will be a big blow to the business and throw the business out of gear for owners as well as the staffers whose livelihoods depend on the same. Hence he has requested the government to not impose any time restrictions on us. He promised that the restaurant owners are more than willing to comply with all the instructions about maintaining social distancing and hygiene in the dine-in area

The restaurant owners, according to Shetty, are already encumbered with the payment of annual excise fee, taxes and other expenses as the year ends and said that already a lot of damage has been done

“The owners were already worried about paying the annual excise fee, taxes and other expenses as the year ends. There has been a great loss of revenue since March 31. With this move, the trouble has been worsened,” said Shetty.