BENGALURU: In a move aimed at getting some blood flowing in the state’s financial arteries, frozen for almost a month by the COVID-19 lockdown, the Karnataka government has decided to say ‘open sesame’ to economic activities in select sectors from Thursday. The State Government issued an order on Wednesday which said manufacturing industries and construction activities will resume, subject to certain conditions. However, most employees in IT/ITeS firms, except those part of essential operations, will have to continue to work from home.
The move to ease restrictions is aimed at mitigating hardship caused due to the lockdown, and the focus seems to be on generating employment and ensuring supply of essential commodities. The government, however, made it clear that the relaxation of norms will not apply to containment zones. The authorities have been directed to ensure that firms enforce all the norms, including social distancing and wearing of masks by employees.
As on Wednesday, the government had declared 359 areas across the state as ‘containment zones’. Food processing industries outside the limits of municipal corporations and municipalities, units manufacturing essential goods and packaging material, coal production, mines and mineral production and transportation will be allowed from Thursday. Hotels, homestays, lodges and motels, which are accommodating tourists and persons stranded due to the lockdown, including medical and emergency staff, and air and sea crew, will be allowed to resume operations
Curbs on pvt vehicles stay
Courer services, governmentapproved Common Service Centres (CSC) at gram panchayat level, cold storage facilities and warehousing services, including at ports, airports, railway stations, container depots, individual units and other links in the logistics chain will be allowed to operate. Services provided by self-employed persons like electricians, IT repair, plumbers, motor mechanics and carpenters in local areas too will be allowed.
The government has also allowed construction activities, including roads, irrigation projects, buildings and all kinds of industrial projects including MSMEs, outside municipal corporation limits and all kinds of projects in industrial estates where workers are available on site and no workers are required to be brought in from outside.
In Bengaluru, Metro construction work too can start if workers are available on site. Restrictions on movement of private vehicles will continue, but those with valid passes for emergency services, including medical and veterinary care, and all personnel travelling with passes to their place of work will be allowed. Inter-district and inter- state movement of individuals, except for medical reasons or for those specifically permitted under guidelines, will continue to be prohibited. All other restrictions imposed earlier will continue to be in force.
WHAT’S ALLOWED
Agricultural and horticultural activities; Fishing, aquaculture,animal husbandry
Tea/coffee and rubber plantations with maximum of 50% workers
Bank branches and ATMs, IRDAI and insurance companies
WHAT’S NOT ALLOWED
Passenger movement by trains except for security purposes.
Buses for public transport, Metro,autos, taxis and cab aggregators
Cinema halls, malls, shoppingcomplexes, gyms, bars, pubs, liquor stores.
WHAT’S ALLOWED
Postal services & post offices All goods traffic will be allowed toply including cement, steel, jelly,tiles, paint, bricks and tar
4-MONTH-OLD 2ND YOUNGEST IN STATE TO TEST +VE
Kalaburagi: A four-month-old baby boy tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday (Patient 424).Apart from him, who is the second youngest patient in Karnataka, his mother also tested positive
(Patient 425). Both the infant and his mother are contacts of Patient 395.