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Markets in UP to be closed on weekends
The Uttar Pradesh government, last Thursday, had ordered a 55-hour weekend restriction across the state, directing all establishments to stay shut during the period. Only essential services are allowed to operate.
Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath said on Sunday that markets in the state would be closed on Saturdays and Sundays to curb the spread of coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
They would remain open from Monday to Friday, as per a state government statement quoting the CM, after a review meeting of Covid-19 and unlock 2.0 on Sunday.
The Uttar Pradesh government, last Thursday, had ordered a 55-hour weekend restriction across the state, directing all establishments — government and private offices, commercial establishments, markets, urban and rural haats and public transport (barring UPSRTC buses ferrying passengers from railway stations) — to stay shut during the period. Only essential services are allowed to operate.
“During the weekly closure (on Saturday and Sunday) the government will run cleanliness and sanitisation drives in the markets. Even the industrial establishments would undertake their own sanitisation drives on the two days,” Adityanath said.
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State medical education minister, Suresh Khanna, state health minister, Jai Pratap Singh, chief secretary, RK Tiwari, infrastructure and industrial development commissioner, Alok Tandon, agriculture production commissioner, Alok Sinha, additional chief secretary (home) Awanish Kumar Awasthi and director-general of police, HC Awasthi, were among those who attended the meeting.
He said that the construction work at ongoing projects, such as expressways, dams and flood control constructions, would continue with social distancing on all days.
Elaborating on Covid-19 arrangements, the CM called for uninterrupted supply of oxygen to all dedicated hospitals and oxygen backup stock there for at least 48 hours. He also asked the officers concerned to continue extensive publicity and awareness drives for protection from Covid-19. “Tell people to make masks an essential part of life and get into the habit of washing hands with soap frequently,” he said.
The CM said that so far, 77,000 revenue villages had undergone cleanliness drives and fogging, besides fogging in 9,000 urban municipal wards . “Establish a dialogue with village heads to guide them about regular cleanliness drives in their respective villages,” Adityanath directed officials.
The CM reiterated that the state must scale up its Covid-19 testing capabilities to conduct 50,000 tests per day. He directed the Gorakhpur divisional commissioner to do effective monitoring for Covid-19 as well as prevention of vector-borne diseases in all the districts of Gorakhpur division.
He asked the state health minister to establish a dialogue with all chief medical officers and the state medical education minister to stay in touch with medical colleges and institutes.
