As coronavirus figures have shown signs of decline in Maharashtra, the state government has allowed the reopening of amusement parks, the extension of the timing of restaurants and shops from Friday. The decision was taken by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray after a meeting with the Maharashtra COVID-19 Task Force.
The BMC said the provisions mentioned in the Maharashtra government’s notification under “Break the Chain” guidelines will be applicable “as it is” till further orders. The civic body has further stated that COVID-19 norms such as social distancing, use of masks and other measures announced by the state government, will be mandatory.
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According to researchers of the Chennai-based Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Mumbai’s R-value, which reflects how rapidly the coronavirus pandemic is spreading, has dropped below one after being over one in the first half of October.
“In order to prevent the transmission of the Covid 19 virus, restrictions like regulating of time, scrupulous adherence to Covid appropriate behaviour, requirements of service providers as well as visitors to be fully vaccinated, restrictions on occupancy etc. have been imposed upon various establishments,” the government said in the fresh order.
Here is a categorical list of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all the places that are about to operate from Friday:
Amusement Parks
The Maharashtra government has allowed the reopening of amusement parks from Friday, the Chief Minister’s secretariat had announced on Monday. However, water rides in amusement parks have still not been permitted, it added.
“We are slowly relaxing the restrictions and the number of patients seems to be decreasing. We are also reopening cinemas and theatres from October 22. There is a constant demand to extend the working hours of restaurants and shops,” the statement quoted Thackeray as saying.
It was also decided to allow rides (except water rides) in the open space in amusement parks, it added.
Cinema Halls
Besides amusement parks, the Thackeray government on Tuesday issued SOPs to reopen auditorium and cinema halls from Friday. Under the guidelines, issued by the state government, cinema halls, theatres and multiplexes will be allowed to open with 50 per cent seating capacity.
Visitors will be asked to show their ‘safe status’ on the Aarogya Setu App. In addition, regular covid-appropriate behaviour including masking, physical distancing, covering of face while coughing/sneezing, regular hand sanitisation etc need to be followed.
The decision to allow cinema halls to operate came after filmmaker Rohit Shetty and Dr. Jayantilal Gada, Chairman and MD of Pen Studios met Maharashtra Chief Minister Thackeray last month to discuss the reopening of the theatres across the state.
In September, the Multiplex Association of India (MAI), along with leading multiplex chains PVR and INOX had also urged the Maharashtra government to reopen theatres in the state on an “urgent basis”, claiming that the film exhibition sector that provides employment to lakhs of people had lost an estimated Rs 9,000 crore in the last six months.
The coronavirus pandemic had an overwhelming effect on the film industry as many movie shoots and theatres across India were halted twice. In 2020, film production activities and theatres business came to a standstill from mid-March when the pandemic first struck India, only to be restarted for a few months from October and November in various parts of the country.
Restaurants and Eateries
All restaurants and eateries have been allowed to function till midnight 12am, according to a government notification issued by state’s Chief Secretary Sitaram Kunte on Tuesday. All other establishments that have been allowed to function by the government may be allowed to function till 11 PM, the notification said.
Meanwhile, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has issued a circular permitting all restaurants and eateries in Mumbai to function till midnight.
“We are slowly relaxing the restrictions and the number of patients seems to be decreasing. We are also reopening cinemas and theatres from October 22. There is a constant demand to extend the working hours of restaurants and shops,” a statement quoting Thackeray had said.
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