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Covid-19: Weddings postponed and banquet owners told to limit crowd
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has urged banquet hall owners to postpone or cancel events and ensure the number of guests for events on their premises
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has urged banquet hall owners to postpone or cancel events and ensure the number of guests for events on their premises remains less than 100. Meanwhile, many citizens have deferred events or turned them into “close family affairs”.
The BMC had issued an order on Monday under rule 10 of Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 to enforce social distancing. Under this order, the BMC has closed down schools, colleges, cinema halls, swimming pools, gyms, malls, etc, banning mass congregations and functions.
Nikhil Sawant, a resident of Mumbai, said he is most likely to postpone his wedding scheduled in the city on April 14. “I am currently in Germany, and if I come to Mumbai, I will have to be quarantined for 14 days. There is added uncertainty over what could happen in the next week or so. I have almost decided to cancel my wedding on April 14, and reschedule it to avoid the hassles,” he said.
Snehal Rajani, a Thane resident, said she is scheduled to get married on Sunday, but is still in search of a banquet hall. “We had invited around 600 people earlier for the wedding, but we have now reduced the guest list to 150. Two banquet halls have cancelled the booking and we are now looking for a third one,” she said.
One such guest is Maitrayee Iyer, a Nagpur resident, who was to come to the city on Wednesday. Iyer said, “I had to visit Mumbai for a wedding followed by a tour to a nearby hill station for a vacation, but I have decided to cancel my bookings.”
A senior BMC official said, “In case of weddings, as they are pre-decided, we are asking people through banquet hall owners to reduce the number of guests.’’
Several banquet hall owners based in areas such as Worli, Prabhadevi, Andheri and Powai are taking bookings, but avoiding gatherings above 200. The owners are promising a full refund, in case the government imposes a ban.
