Mall owners want Mumbai locals to be curtailed as Covid cases rise | 10 points – Hindustan Times

Amid the ongoing deliberation of what can be shut down to check the spread of the Covud-19 infection in Mumbai, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray will address the people of Maharashtra on Friday. The state government, reluctant to impose a lockdown straightaway, earlier said that the situation will be reviewed from time to time, while district authorities can take appropriate measures locally. Pune district on Friday has announced stricter restrictions asking eateries, malls, cinema halls and religious places to remain shut for the next seven days.

Here is all you need to know about the present Covid-19 situation and restrictions

> Maharashtra is reporting the highest number of daily cases, daily deaths and also has the highest number of active Covid-19 cases. Pune district has 64,599 active cases, which is the highest in the country.

> Over 50 per cent of the active Covid-19 cases are in Maharashtra.

> In Mumbai, malls are resisting the idea of lockdown. The Shopping Centres Association of India said the malls get only 1 per cent of the floating population and bulk of people are found in trains and local markets, PTI reported.

> Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar has hinted that some restrictions can be imposed, including that of curtaining Mumbai locals. “Train journey might be restricted to only essential services staff only as in the past,” the mayor told news agency PTI.

> The Maha Vikas Aghadi government is divided over the necessity of another lockdown. Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam on Thursday joined a silent protest of hotel owners.

> Nagpur district, which was under lockdown till March 31, on Friday recorded 4,108 Covid-19 cases.

> In February and March, several schools in Maharashtra districts, including Palghar, Latur, emerged as hotspots.

> The present situation in Maharashtra is worse than what was witnessed during the first peak of the pandemic in 2020.

> Though mutant strains of the virus have been found in the state, the Centre has dismissed any link between the mutants and the surge in the Covid-19 cases. Not wearing a mask, flouting social distancing rules, in general, are being blamed for the surge.

> It is unlikely that there will be another lockdown, but as Thackeray earlier asked to be prepared for lockdown-like restrictions, stricter curbs across the state are likely.

(With Agency Inputs)