The Greater Chennai Corporation Friday issued orders to shut down shops in nine commercial areas of the city from Saturday till August 9. The decision comes against the backdrop of the marginal rise in the number of Covid-19 cases in the city.
According to a press release, shops between Ranganathan Street –North Usman Road junction and Mambalam will remain closed from today (Saturday) till 6 am on August 9. Shops and commercial entities located in other areas of Doveton Junction to Brickklin Road junction in Purasawalkam, Jam Bazaar Bharathi Salai Ratna Café junction to Bells Road junction, Fakir Sahib Street, Habibullah Street, Pulipone Bazaar, NSC Bose Road- Kuralagam junction to Mini Street junction, Royapuram Kalmandapam Salai, Water Tank to Kamatchi Amman Koil, Aminjikarai police outpost to Pulla Avenue Thiru.Vi.Ka.Park junction and Red Hills Anjaneyar Statue to Ambedkar Statue will also remain closed. It has been mentioned that Kothwal market will remain closed from August 1 (Sunday) till August 9.
#COVID19 awareness drive by @chennaicorp on Ranganathan Street,
T Nagar 👏👏 pic.twitter.com/L0xapgzSvG— Janardhan Koushik (@koushiktweets) July 18, 2021
In the release, the civic body said a meeting was chaired by the Corporation Commissioner alongside senior police officials, and the decision to close shops was conveyed to the representatives of traders.
The public has been asked to wear masks and maintain social distancing and follow other Covid-19 protocols.
Earlier this week, Chief Minister MK Stalin instructed the district collectors and the police personnel to strictly implement the Covid-19 protocol and close the areas where the large gathering is witnessed in view of the welfare of the public.
Ever since the government provided relaxations to the shop owners and other commercial stakeholders keeping in view of their livelihood, the corporation, and the police have been continuously monitoring the crowded places and have been instructing to follow Covid-19 protocols. In places like Ranganathan street, special awareness drives were conducted by police personnel however following the complaints about the lack of safety measures, the government has decided to barricade these areas temporarily.
As of Friday, Tamil Nadu recorded 1,947 Covid-19 positive cases, bringing the state tally to 25,57,611. Among these, Chennai reported 215 positive cases, bringing the city’s total to 5,37,951.
Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/chennai/chennai-corporation-shuts-shops-in-commercial-areas-till-august-9-7431447/
