Hours after a pizza delivery boy in Delhi tested positive for Covid-19, leaving 72 families under quarantine, the Ludhiana administration ordered the closure of restaurants delivering food through delivery apps—Swiggy, Zomato and others etc.
Last week, the administration had allowed these restaurants to resume operations on experimental basis. “The administration has rolled back the orders wherein a few restaurants and sweet shops were allowed to operate and deliver food between 7.30pm and 10pm,” an order issued by deputy commissioner Pradeep Agrawal on Thursday read.
The move has been welcomed by the residents and hotel and restaurants’ association, which had been mounting pressure on the administration to shut operations of these food units.
Association president Amarvir Singh said, “It is a good decision amid the rapid increase in the number of cases. The recent case of Delhi where a delivery boy has been found positive for Covid-19 is a matter of great concern.”
Ravi Arora, a resident of BRS Nagar area, said the administration should not have allowed the restaurants to operate in the first place as it increases the chances of spreading the disease. “Several delivery boys are seen on city roads throughout the day and often, they are seen flouting the social distancing norms at halt points. The administration should not allow restaurants to operate until the lockdown is lifted.”
Opposing the decision of allowing a few restaurants to operate during curfew, Congress councillor Parvinder Lapran had asked, “Who would be held responsible if any delivery boy contracts the virus and spreads it further while delivering food. This does not even fall under essential services category.”
{{/usCountry}}Opposing the decision of allowing a few restaurants to operate during curfew, Congress councillor Parvinder Lapran had asked, “Who would be held responsible if any delivery boy contracts the virus and spreads it further while delivering food. This does not even fall under essential services category.”
{{/usCountry}}On Wednesday, a resident of Sudhar had served a legal notice to the administration over the decision to allow a restaurant to deliver food and ice cream in the city. The Council of Engineers has also written to Punjab chief secretary and the district administration demanding that the permission given to over 400 industrial units to operate amid lockdown should also be cancelled.