Chennai’s complete lockdown to be relaxed from today: Full list of what’s allowed, what’s restricted – Times Now

Chennai: The complete lockdown imposed on Tamil Nadu’s capital Chennai and some other districts in the wake of rising cases of novel coronavirus, will be relaxed on Monday.

The Tamil Nadu government on Saturday announced that several restrictions imposed in Chennai and its suburban areas will be eased from July 6 after 17 days of “intense lockdown”.

On June 19, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami had announced 12-hour strict lockdown in areas falling under the limits of Greater Chennai Police and other districts like Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur and Chengalpattu amid spike in the number of coronavirus cases.

Tamil Nadu, which is the second-most affected state in the country after Maharashtra, which has more than 2 lakh cases, has so far reported over 1,11,000 coronavirus cases and more than 15,00 deaths.

Here are activities that are allowed in areas under Greater Chennai Police’s limit:

• Vegetable and grocery shops will be allowed to open from 6 am to 6 pm
•  Textile and hardware shops can open from 10 am to 6 pm
• Restaurants will be allowed to open between 6 am and 9 pm
• Online food delivery service will be allowed till 9:00 pm
• Tea stalls and shops (takeaway service) can open from 6 am to 6 pm.
• Showrooms outside malls will be permitted to open from 10 am to 6 pm.
• Barbershops, salons, spa and beauty parlours are allowed to open as per standard operating procedures (SOPs). They can’t use air conditioning
• IT/ITEs are permitted to operate provided the company is offering transport facilities at 50 per cent strength to a maximum of 80 people
• Showrooms and large format shops (jewellery, textile shops), except in shopping malls, are permitted to operate from 10 am to 6 pm with 50 per cent strength and without air conditioning. Not more than five customers will be allowed inside a shop at the same time.
• All private offices, industrial establishments, and export-oriented units will be allowed to function at 50 per cent strength though work from home will be encouraged.
• Auto-rickshaws are permitted with two passengers, excluding the driver
• Fish stalls, meat shops to be allowed to function

Here are activities that are prohibited:

• Major religious places will remain closed and congregations prohibited in urban areas
• Hotels and other hospitality services are not allowed to operate, except those meant for housing health, police, government officials, health care workers and stranded persons, including tourists, for quarantine facilities, etc.
• Shopping malls to remain closed
• Schools, Colleges, educational training/coaching institutions etc will also remain closed. Online/distant learning is encouraged
• International air travel of passengers will not be allowed, except for purposes permitted by the Home Ministry
• Metro and suburban train services will not be available
• Sports complexes and Stadia will be permitted without spectators
• Inter-state public transport will not be allowed till July 31; inter-district transport is suspended till July 15

Here’s what permitted in Thiruvallur, Kancheepuram and Chengalpet areas, except containment zones:

• Only small temples, mosques, dargahs and churches in rural areas with an annual income of less than Rs 10,000 will be open to people. These places will have to strictly adhere to social distancing and other SOPs issued by the government
• Tea shops, restaurants, vegetable shops and provision shops are permitted to function from 6 am to 8 pm. Restaurants can run with dine-in facilities with 50% of seating facility while tea shops will also be allowed to run in a similar fashion.
• Other shops, including retail vending such as TASMAC shops, are allowed to operate from 10 am to 8 pm. Delivery of all goods, including non-essential items through e-commerce, is permitted
• All private offices are allowed to function with 100% strength, however, work from home shall also be encouraged
• Fish stalls and meat shops will be allowed to resume activity
•  Showrooms and large shops, such as jewellery and textile shops, except in shopping malls, are permitted to operate with 50% strength without air conditioning. Not more than five customers will be allowed inside at the same time to ensure social distancing
• Rental vehicles and taxis, including private cab aggregators, are permitted to run with not more than three passengers, excluding the driver
• All Industries and export-oriented units are permitted to operate with 100% employees. IT/ITES are permitted to operate with 100% strength with work from home for at least 20% of the force