Maha Lifts Covid Curbs in 11 Districts; No Cap on Funeral Attendance, Spas to Open With 50% Fully Jabbed Staff

The Maharashtra government on Monday further relaxed Covid-19 restrictions in 11 districts including Mumbai in the wake of dipping daily coronavirus cases. The state government has allowed an increase in the number of guests at marriage functions, and also permitted swimming pools, water parks, theatres and restaurants to remain open with 50 percent capacity subject to nod of the competent authority.

However, the new guidelines to ease Covid curbs will only be applicable in those districts where 90% the people have been administered with single-dose and 70% of people with double dose of vaccination for above 18 years. These 11 districts are Mumbai, Pune, Bhandara, Sindhudurg, Raigad, Ratnagiri, Satara, Sangli, Gondia, Kolhapur and Chandrapur.

As per the order, all national parks, tourist spots and safaris will open as per regular timings with online tickets and the visitors must be fully vaccinated. “Controlling authorities of these activities should impose reasonable restrictions on the number of people to be allowed in such activities at any time in view of Covid 19 pandemic,” according to the order.

Here’s a look at what remains open now:

— Spa’s can remain operational with 50% capacity subject to the same restrictions as imposed for beauty salons and hair-cutting salons.

— No limit to the number of persons that may attend funerals.

— Beaches, gardens, parks to remain open as per timings fixed by the local authorities. Amusement parks will also remain operational with 50% capacity.

— Swimming pools, water parks to remain open with 50% capacity.

— Restaurants, theatres to also remain operational. Bhajans and all other local, cultural and folk entertainment programmes to be allowed with 50% capacity of the venue.

— Marriages may have guests up to 25% of the capacity of the open ground and banquet halls, or 200, whichever is lower.

Mumbai eases curbs

In an order on Tuesday, the BMC stated that restaurants and theatres can operate at 50 percent capacity in Mumbai while the night curfew has been lifted. The order stated that local tourist spots will remain open as per their normal timing and weekly Bazzars will remain open as per normal timing as well. Beaches, gardens and parks will also open as per their normal timings.

The Maharashtra government order further stated that the DDMA may decide about the restrictions on the movement of people during the night curfew hours from 11 pm to 5 am, and it may allow up to 25% audience in competitive sports and other such activities, including horse racing. Local tourist sports and weekly bazaars may also open but with restrictions.

Maharashtra on Monday reported 15,140 fresh coronavirus positive cases, 7,304 less than the day before, and 39 fatalities, including 26 in Mumbai. The new additions pushed the overall caseload to 77,21,109 and the death toll to 1,42,611, it said.

With 91 new Omicron cases being detected on Monday in Maharashtra, the tally of such infections went up to 3,221, the state health department said. Out of these cases, 1,682 patients have recovered so far. Of the new cases of the Omicron variant, 18 were reported from Nagpur, 11 each from Aurangabad, Raigad and Navi Mumbai, eight each from Mumbai and Thane city, five each from Sindhudurg and Satara, four each from Amravati, Pimpri-Chinchwad city and Pune city and one each from Yawatmal and Pune rural, as per the department.

The department said the overall case fatality rate in Maharashtra stands at 1.85 per cent. The case recovery rate is 95.42 per cent. The positivity rate is 11.94 per cent. Currently, 11,74,825 people are in home quarantine and 2,798 people are in institutional quarantine, the department said.

(With PTI inputs)

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