All industries allowed to open in GB Nagar, but with reduced staff

The Gautam Budh Nagar administration Tuesday allowed all industries to open from Wednesday without having to seek a special permission from the administration for

The Gautam Budh Nagar administration Tuesday allowed all industries to open from Wednesday without having to seek a special permission from the administration for doing so. The move comes after the Uttar Pradesh government issued new guidelines stating that all units can resume operations in the fourth phase of the nationwide lockdown, which kicked in on May 18 and will continue till May 31. However, they will have to ensure that only 33% of the total staff members report to work and all laid down protocols or standard operating procedures (SOPs) regarding social distancing are adhered to strictly at the workplace.

HT Image

“All kinds of industrial units can resume operations and they do not need permission for doing so, provided they follow social distancing norms on their premises,” Suhas LY, district magistrate, Gautam Budh Nagar, said.

A delegation of Noida Entrepreneur Association (NEA) members held a meeting on Tuesday with the district magistrate in his camp office and discussed the opening of factories. The administration told the factory owners that they will have to disinfect premises properly and maintain social distancing among employees. They will also have to examine if all employees reporting to work are free of Covid-like symptoms. If anyone is found with such symptoms, then (s)he will be reported to district health department immediately.

The state government had ordered complete shutdown of factories and industrial units from March 25, when the nationwide lockdown was announced to contain the spread of Covid-19. However on May 4, the state government had allowed factories, industrial units and other businesses to resume operations after seeking permission from the administration and the industrial bodies.

There are at least 12,000 factories in Noida, 8,000 units in Greater Noida and at least 3,000 in areas under the UP State Industrial Development Corporation. Noida and Greater Noida are home to factories, which manufacture electronic products, automobile spare parts, mobile phones and other products. According to the state government, at least 70% of all mobile makers in India -- including Samsung, Lava, Vivo, OPPO, Micromax and others -- have set up their manufacturing plants in Gautam Budh Nagar.

The UP government allowed all industries to resume operations in order to revive economic activity, which has been affected due to the prolonged shutdown, leading to a huge revenue crisis, officials said. But resuming operations may be easy, factory owners said.

“Now, after the government has allowed operations to resume, we will try to start work from Wednesday. But resuming operations amid this pandemic is not going to be easy what with workers leaving the city. At least 20% of workers have already left the city and the remaining, too, want to return to their home towns. And workers who live in areas bordering Delhi cannot come to work due to sealing of Noida-Delhi border,” Vipin Malhan, NEA president, said.