Curfew call: Weekend chill is out of question, say Delhiites

Auditoriums, malls, gyms and spas will remain shut, and people will not be able to dine in at restaurants as only home delivery of food will be allowed

With Delhi reporting 17,282 fresh cases of Covid-19 on Wednesday, the highest single-day surge in the Capital since the pandemic erupted, it was announced on Wednesday afternoon that Delhiites will have to observe weekend curfew, and “break the chain of transmission” to tackle a steep rise in Covid cases. This implies that auditoriums, malls, gyms and spas will remain shut, and people will not be able to dine in at restaurants as only home delivery of food will be allowed. The weekly markets, however, will be allowed but with restrictions. Only essential services, and people going for weddings will be issued curfew passes.

Delhiites will have to observe weekend curfew, and “break the chain of transmission” to tackle a steep rise in Covid cases. (Photo: Adnan Abidi/REUTERS)

Restauranteurs feel this move will make a further dent in their sales. Umang Tewari, owner, Local, Junkyard, and Liv Bar, says, “With the night curfew, our business was already 70% down. And people were only coming over the weekends, as they were busy on weekdays. With the weekend curfew, our business will be zero because people don’t come out much from Monday to Friday, during the day time.” And Zorawar Kalra, founder, Massive Restaurants Pvt Ltd, adds, “The pandemic has affected the entire world and most industries have been hit hard. Especially the already beleaguered food and beverage industry. The past year has been a very difficult one for all. The new measures in place are understandably the need of the hour but will have a huge impact on sales and on the survivability of the industry as a whole. Delivery alone cannot sustain a restaurant enterprise. Already the restaurants were operating on 50% capacity and now with the measures in place it is definitely going to effect business in a huge way!” 

For Delhiites, such as Vaibhavi Ananya, a final year student of Delhi University, the weekend curfew spells “depressing” vibes. “The whole week we have our online classes so we really don’t have time to go out. Evening tak padai chalti rehti hai. So it’s usually just over the weekend when we get some time, when we can chill a bit while managing our assignments. We have a really short window to take off our mind off these things, but with the weekend curfew, we’ll have to just stay back home. It’s indeed required, but is too depressing to handle.”

Mayank Ghai, a fitness expert from Delhi’s Punjabi Bagh, says it’s better to shift the workouts permanently to home! “I’ll do home training. Thankfully, I have a gym at home also. Ab aur kya sakte hai. Gym jaate the, friends se bhi milte the to better feel hota tha, Covid mein bhi. Ab woh bhi roz roz nahi ho payega,” says Ghai, and Ayush Jain, a BBA student from Gurugram adds, “I usually took my camera along for weekend trips to places in Delhi, so that I could take part in photo walks. Woh toh nahin ho paayega ab... And I had planned to visit the mall for shopping, which I won’t be able to do either. Ab toh online zindabad!” 

But some feel that this was the need of the hour. Gaya Kashyap, another DU student, says, “I think it’s a fantastic move, to be fair. I mean people are dying because of Covid, and if we have to sit indoors again for a little while so that it ceases, I don’t think much is lost. I’ve the privilege to make that choice, to choose to stay indoors rather than have fun outdoors. So I don’t mind prioritising seclusion when others have no option but to step outside and work. This much we could do for the society.”

Author tweets @Nainaarora8

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