As Covid-19 cases across the country decline, states have begun easing restrictions on resuming economic activity and people’s freedom of movement. Although authorities urge the public to continue to follow protocols such as masking and spacing, with the threat of one third wave threatens big, people don’t seem to have learned any lessons. This despite the fact that the second wave of the pandemic infected and killed a record number of people.
As searing heat inundated northern parts of India due to the late arrival of the monsoons, People flocked to the famous mountain towns in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir as Covid-19 curbs eased amid declining cases.
Terrifying photos of a huge crowd without masks have appeared on social media. But such violations do not only happen in the mountains. People in metropolises again disregard the Covid-19 norms. Here are our soil reports.
READ: Hundreds disregard Covid norms to celebrate fishing festival in Tamil Nadu village
CHENNAI
Tamil Nadu is gradually being unblocked and people are disregarding the Covid-19 protocols. The government has announced lockdown easing and allowed uniform regulation of the crowd across the state. Restaurants, fitness studios, yoga studios and IT companies have opened with 50 percent capacity, while intra-district and cross-district public transport has also been allowed with 50 percent seating capacity.
And a large number of people have started going again. People have been seen in many places not wearing face masks and social distancing rules have been thrown.
(Photo: India Today / K Daniel)
The Greater Chennai Corporation fined 5,907 companies and 29,096 individuals for non-compliance with Covid-19 protocols April 9 through July 6.
The company said 1,426 halls and hotels registered for various events, including weddings, have been inspected and 31 places are breaking rules. They too were fined 1,29,000 rupees.
Tamil Nadu, which saw an alarming spike in Covid-19 cases in May, peaked in the last week of the month. The state is still recovering from the second wave. 3,367 cases were reported as of July 7, with 6/25 848 cases recorded in the state to date. A total of 33,196 deaths have been registered so far.
The State Minister of Health, Dr. J. Radhakrishnan, urged people to be careful to control the spread of the virus.
ALSO READ: Ministry of Health warns of “revenge trips” and warns of lockdown if Covid norms are violated
MUMBAI
Mumbai is limping back to normal. Although shopping centers and multiplexes are not yet open, markets and public spaces are again overcrowded and many people are becoming less vigilant. Local trains have yet to be opened as the government fears they may be super spreaders of the virus.
Although Mumbai has a 96 percent recovery rate and has doubled the rate to 844 days, medical experts believe that citizens shouldn’t repeat the mistake of becoming complacent as they fear a third wave. On July 7, the city recorded 664 new cases and nine deaths. The number of active cases is 7,816.
Officials from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) appealed to people not to be on guard and to follow Covid-appropriate behavior.
“The state is focused on vaccination to achieve herd immunity. The third wave, for which the state is making every effort, is feared. There is also a horror of the Delta Plus variant. Therefore, it is the responsibility of every citizen to follow basic rules such as masking and distance, ”said one official.
So far, the BMC, together with Mumbai Police and Railways, has collected more than 55 billion rupees in fines from citizens for not wearing masks.
DELHI
The situation is similar in Delhi, which was one of the hardest hit cities during the second wave. Although the markets in Laxmi Nagar, Lajpat Nagar and Nangloi have closed for violating Covid norms, no one has learned a lesson. Aaj Tak conducted a reality check of the city’s overcrowded markets and found that no shopkeeper or customer was following Covid-appropriate behavior.
Covid protocols have been openly disregarded at Ajmeri Gate, the oldest hardware market in Delhi. Social distancing was not observed and people did not wear masks. In Karol Bagh Market, from shopkeepers to customers, no one thought it necessary to wear a mask.
Chawri Bazaar, one of the busiest markets in Delhi, is showing no seriousness in adhering to the Covid-19 protocols.
Aaj Tak found that vendors followed the rules in areas like Sadar Bazaar. They said they were ready to work with the administration in any way they can to help them comply with the protocols – be it social distancing or wearing a face mask.
Sadar Bazaar is one of the largest wholesale markets in Asia. Many people visit the market every day. The cotton market, which closed a few days ago, has reopened and traders themselves are giving people masks.
“There is no place for loading and unloading goods in the narrow alleys, which is why people come to the cotton market and load and unload their goods without masks. As a result, social distancing is not being respected and there is too much crowding, ”said one trader.
ALSO READ: Hundreds take holy baths in Ganga in Haridwar, Farrukhabad, disregarding Covid-19 norms | See photos
CLOCK: Insane rush to mountain stations: soil reports from Himachal Pradesh
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