PUNE Despite a strict weekend lockdown in place in the city, huge crowds were seen outside chicken and mutton on Sunday morning.
Even shop owners stayed open with shutters half down or back doors open, which led to crowding outside the shops.
Similar scenes were noticed on internal roads, where vegetable vendors drew the crowds.
During the weekend, starting from Friday 8 pm till Monday 7 am, all non-essential shops are to remain closed, except medical stores. Milk delivery is allowed in the morning hours.
Speaking anonymously, the owner of a mutton shop in Katraj area said, “Sunday is our main day to do business and most of our customers come to buy meat only on Sunday, so we cannot keep the shop shut. Due to this weekend lockdown we are facing a lot of difficulties. On one side customers call us to get meat and then, we have to manage it with shutters down.”
There eight chicken and mutton vendors in the Katraj area near the Dattanagar chowk. When the local police came to know about the crowds, they immediately rushed to the spot to close down the shops.
“Meat shops should remain open on the weekend, as lots of people plan to eat non-vegetarian food only on weekends. Also vegetable shops and roadside vendors should also be allowed. I got one kg of mutton from my regular shop, but from the backdoor,” said Vipul Alekar a resident of Hadapsar.
{{/usCountry}}“Meat shops should remain open on the weekend, as lots of people plan to eat non-vegetarian food only on weekends. Also vegetable shops and roadside vendors should also be allowed. I got one kg of mutton from my regular shop, but from the backdoor,” said Vipul Alekar a resident of Hadapsar.
{{/usCountry}}Another resident, Sachin Alande, said, “We prefer to eat chicken every Sunday, and in this situation protein is a good option. When I went to the nearby shop to buy chicken it was closed, but then I contacted the owner and he called me to another place. Now some restrictions need to be relaxed as the Covid cases are dropping.”
Talking about this weekend lockdown restrictions, PMC commissioner Vikram Kumar said, “During weekend only emergency services are allowed and medical shops, all other essential shops or vegetable and fruit vendors should remain closed. If anyone is opening the shops then they will be penalised.”