West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said that the lockdown will continue till May 31 in the state and provided details of what is allowed and what is not.

“Private offices, even those inside shopping malls, can work with up to 50% staff. Inter-district buses will be allowed from May 21 while auto-rickshaws can operate from May 27 with 2 people only. Beauty parlours and salons can open but all equipment must be sanitised,” she said.

Advertisement

She also told that all big shops will open from May 21, and the hawkers’ market will open from May 27 every alternate day.

Further she told that the hotels can be opened with strict social distancing. Sports is permitted but no gathering of spectators can take place, she said.

“We are not declaring curfew, but the lockdown will continue till May 31. We don’t like the word curfew particularly,” she said.

In Bengal, containment zones will be sub-divided into three zones, Zone A – affected zone, Zone B – buffer zone and Zone C – clean zone.

“We have to learn to help each other, we will have to sanitise everything we use,” she said.

“We have to make wearing masks part of our lives. It is a sign of respect to others,” she added.

On migrant workers, she said, “We are bringing back the migrant workers. We are paying fares and taking care of all costs.”

States like Delhi, Karnataka and Kerala have also come up with the rules for their citizens during the lockdown 4.0.

Yesterday, the Union Government had announced the extension of lockdown for another two weeks due to the coronavirus crisis.

Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has issued guidelines on measures to be taken by Ministries/Departments of Government of India, State Governments/UT Governments & State/UT authorities for containment of COVID19.

The delineation of red, green, and orange zones will be decided by the respective State/Union Territory governments, after taking into consideration the parameters shared by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, MHA had said.

The first lockdown for 21 days was announced on March 24, coming in effect from March 25, was extended for 19 days and again for two weeks.

This time, the fourth version of lockdown comes with much relaxation at a time when the cases of coronavirus have almost stepped into 1 lakh mark.

PM Modi had announced a Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package for Covid on May 12. The package was unboxed in five tranches by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, focusing on MSME, agriculture, migrant workers, taxation, defence, civil aviation, ISRO and other subjects.