the goan I network
PANAJI
Goa locked down on Monday for the second successive day after Sunday’s ‘Janata Curfew’ but owing to the brief hours of chaos in the morning where people ventured out to shut market places in an anxious hunt for daily use items, the State government listed out certain services and business outlets which will be allowed to stay open for some hours from Tuesday.
The three-day lockdown to aid the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic ends on the intervening midnight of March 25-26 and the State government on Monday said, certain outlets and services which are essential will be permitted to stay open between 6 am to 11 am.
The list includes shops selling groceries, milk, bread, fruit, vegetables, meat, fish and eggs as well as department stores and supermarkets for five hours between 6 am and 11 am.
Other services also allowed to operate are offices charged with law-and-order and magisterial duties, the police, defence establishments, Central police and paramilitary organisations, health, banks and automatic teller machines (ATMs), telecom, internet and postal services, petrol pumps, LPG gas agencies and their godowns and transportation activities, fire and emergency services, prisons, electricity and water supply,
sewerage, municipal services, solid waste management, community and public toilets, animal husbandry, animal or cattle feed and veterinary services, Directorate of Accounts only for salary, wages, contingent health and essential services related expenditure, print and electronic media, dairy activities, chemists including pharmaceutical manufacturing distribution and wholesalers, production and manufacturing units which require continuous process after obtaining required permissions from the Collector, manufacturing units engaged in production of essential commodities and their packaging, all other services declared as essential services from time to time by the State government of Goa and the private establishments which support all these services.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has urged Goans working elsewhere, including abroad who have returned or will return to get themselves voluntarily screened and home quarantined.
Hundreds of Goans affected by the curbs imposed by governments across the globe due to the pandemic have returned to Goa and Sawant said it is essential that they voluntarily get themselves screened and also home quarantine themselves. He said, the next one week is risky.
Goa and India, it is feared is unaware of the real magnitude of the COVID-19 situation and global health experts believe the country is reporting low numbers of positive cases and deaths due to the dreaded strain of influenza because it is highly under-testing.
Goa for instance has no virology lab and has to send the throat swabs of suspect patients to Pune for the test. The results are received only 2-3 days later.
Meanwhile Sawant said no public religious congregations will be allowed in the State including Gudi Padwa and Namaz.
“The police will act against those who violate the restrictions which are imposed,” Sawant warned.
