West Bengal relaxes lockdown norms till May 31 — 15 people allowed to gather at shops, for weddings, parlours and private offices to reopen

• The nationwide lockdown has been extended till May 31.
  
• As per the guidelines issued by the West Bengal government, private offices can resume operations — working every alternate day — with 50% workforce.
  
• Auto rickshaws will be allowed to operate with two people from May 27, the state guidelines added.
  
• Under the new set of rules, a maximum of 15 people will be allowed to gather at shops, wedding parties, funerals etc. Earlier, only seven people were allowed to gather at a place.
  
• There are as many as 516 containment zones in West Bengal.

The nationwide lockdown has been extended till May 31. The West Bengal government has laid out new and relaxed guidelines for the lockdown so as to revive the state economy.

As per the state guidelines, private offices can resume operations — working every alternate day — with 50% workforce. This also applies to the offices built in shopping malls. In addition, barber shops and parlours can reopen. But they will have to keep sanitization of tools and the salon premises in check.

Keeping in mind the condition of migrant workers, the state government allowed the inter-state movement of buses based on mutual consent. The buses can operate on routes with 30 passengers while taxis can only operate with two people in it. Auto rickshaws will be allowed to operate with two people from May 27, the state guidelines added.

From May 27, the ‘hawker markets’ or those complexes with a number of shops selling on pavement will open on alternate days. "But big shops except in containment zones can open from the 21," Banerjee added.

The sports complexes and stadiums will reopen across the state — but without spectators — that means only the participating players will be allowed, for the purposes of training etc.

Under the new set of rules, a maximum of 15 people will be allowed to gather at shops, wedding parties, funerals etc. Earlier, only seven people were allowed to gather at a place.

However, the containment zones will still be allowed only the delivery of essential items. There are as many as 516 containment zones in West Bengal. Of this, 318 are located in Kolkata alone.

“Standalone shops in non-containment and green zones are likely to remain open from 7 am to 6 pm. The zones under containment are expected to be divided into segments based on high and low levels of infection. Nothing, however, has been finalised yet,” the state official told PTI.

On May 12, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced how the COVID-19 red zones shall be divided into three categories, adding that the zones will have partial relaxations to resume operations. "We have decided to divide all the red zones into three categories - A, B and C. There will be partial relaxations in both ‘B' and ‘C' categories, while strict guidelines will be maintained in the ‘A' category," Banerjee told IANS.

See also:
Punjab lockdown guidelines till May 31 — Shops, salons, offices and banks to resume operations

These are the revised guidelines for Karnataka — saloons, shops can open but everything will be closed on every Sunday