News
India and Pakistan ease coronavirus restrictions for some small businesses
View(s):NEW DELHI, April 25 (Reuters) – India allowed shops in residential areas to reopen from Saturday, more than a month after the country went into lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus, federal and state officials said.
The federal home ministry said that retailers could resume operations with the staff numbers reduced by half as long as employees wore masks and gloves and appropriate social distancing was maintained.
The sale of liquor and other non-essential items continues to be banned and no shops in large market places or multi-brand and single-brand malls will be allowed to reopen until May 3.
Members of industry groups welcomed the partial resumption of activity but said a large number of businesses faced bottlenecks due to a lack of raw materials and police restrictions on the movement of workers.
India has reported 24,942 cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, and 779 deaths. The authorities have set up teams to focus on compliance with lockdown measures.
In Modi’s home state of Gujarat, authorities allowed software and IT companies to start operations on Saturday with up to 50% of their staff though some industry bodies urged members to start with only 10% to 15% of the workforce.
In Pakistan, the government extended a nationwide lockdown until May 9. However, it is switching to a “smart lockdown” from Saturday with targeted tracking and tracing of cases while allowing some industrial and commercial activities to resume under safety guidelines. “Isolating these cases and their contacts will improve our ability to contain the disease alongside allowing the economy to function and people to get employment,” said planning minister Asad Umar, who oversees Pakistan’s coronavirus response body.