HYDERABAD: Here is good news for tipplers. By a GO on Friday, the State government has permitted bars, clubs and the bars at tourism hotspots to reopen with immediate effect. Though the news cheered up the tipplers, the owners of the bars received the orders with a pinch of salt.
The representatives of the industry felt that all bars and clubs remained closed till now and then they were allowed to reopen, with immediate effect, but that just a few days ahead of the renewal of their licences.
There are about 1,400 bars in the State. The renewal of their licences is due on October 1. The timing of the issue of permission to reopen bars made some bar owners wonder if it was done with an intent to collect licence fee. It has to be mentioned here that the licence fee is `41 lakh, while the application fee is `2 lakh, per bar. However, the State government, while according the permission, imposed a condition that Covid-19 protocols should be in place when the bars are reopened.
As per the conditions, all bars should have non-touch infrared thermometers/thermal screening machines at the entrance. Proper queue management and hygiene conditions should be maintained. The bar managements have also been told to ensure crowd management in parking lots and the provision of hand sanitisers to the customers. The staff and crew of the bar should wear masks.
However, there will be a ban on gatherings, musical events and/or dance floors in the bars. Deep cleaning and sanitisation of entire bar premises should be done twice a day — in the morning and the evening.
Sanitisation should also be done before a new customer occupies a seat. Proper ventilation has to be maintained on the premises. However, permit rooms at shops will remain closed until further orders.
All parks across State to reopen today
All parks across the State, which come under the Forest, MAUD and Panchayat Raj Departments, will reopen on Saturday.Telangana Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar issued an order to this regard on Friday which said that all those parks belonging to the local bodies and Forest department are not prohibited to open under the Unlock-4 guidelines released by Telangana government on August 31 and directed the heads of the three government departments to take necessary action. The Unlock-4 guidelines only mention that “entertainment parks” are prohibited.
Speaking to Express, the officials of Forest department, GHMC and Hyderabad Metropolitan Authority said that all parks in Hyderabad, under these departments, will reopen on Saturday. This includes KBR National Park, Sanjeeviah Park, NTR Park and Indira Park. The Forest Department announced that it will reopen all 18 Urban Forest Parks that fall under the HMDA limits and 15 parks in the districts across the State on Saturday. Meanwhile, the Nehru Zoological Park will reopen on October 6.
Conditions
As per the conditions mentioned in the GO, issued on Friday, all bars should have non-touch infrared thermometers/thermal screening machines at the entrance. Proper queue management and hygiene conditions should be maintained