Karnataka Govt Issues Revised Curfew Guidelines, Traders Call it ‘Partial Lockdown’ | Complete List of What’s Allowed, What’s Shut on Weekdays

Bengaluru: Karnataka government on Thursday tweaked its order on night curfew. Issuing a clarification, the government said that only shops selling essentials like fruits, vegetables, groceries, fuel, medicines can stay open on weekdays. The government also permitted activities related to construction and industries if employers are willing to follow COVID-19 protocol. This clarification on part of Karnataka government came after it announced new restrictions for weekdays on April 20. The government had announced night curfew from 9 pm to 6 am everyday and weekend curfew till May 4 Chief Secretary P. Ravi Kumar had Wednesday night issued guidelines on enforcing night curfew and weekend curfew, which were tweaked the next day to include a sentence that stated shops and establishments other than those listed in the order will stay shut. A chaos also ensued when shut down bakeries, fruit juice and other shops, prompting traders to call it ”partial lockdown”. According to the modified order, ration shops, grocery shops, wholesale vegetable markets, restaurants and hotels to sell takeaway products, standalone liquor shops and bars, food processing related industries, banks and insurance companies, delivery of e-commerce and barber and salon shops are permitted to operate with strict adherence to the COVID protocol. What’s shut on weekdays: Schools, colleges, educational/ training/coaching institutions etc. shall stay shut. Online learning to continue. All cinema halls, shopping malls, gymnasiums, yoga centers, spas, sports complexes, stadia, swimming pools, entertainment/amusement parks, clubs, theatres, bars and auditoriums, assembly halls will remain closed. All political, social, religious gatherings have been banned. Places of worship will stay shut. What’s permitted: Shops selling essentials can function. Restaurants and eateries can provide only takeaway service. Standalone liquor shops allowed for takeaway only. Banks, insurance offices and ATM allowed. Cold storage and warehousing services allowed. Barber shops and salon can function on one condition that will have to follow COVID-19 guideline. Petrol/diesel pumps, gas stations shall be fully operational. Confusion Among Traders There was confusion throughout the day among traders who were of the view that the order was related to the weekend curfew. However, as the traders opened their shops, the police and senior municipal and district-level officers reached there asking them to close following revised guidelines, some shop owners said. The bustling Chickpet, Balepet, Chamarajpet, Cottonpet, and neighboring trade centres fell silent following this. A few of the traders PTI spoke to termed the closure of shops as ”partial lockdown”, which would deal a severe blow to their businesses, which is already in the doldrums for the past three to four years.