Maharashtra govt mulls relaxation of Covid curbs with precaution

The Maharashtra Covid task force met on Monday evening to discuss the possibility of introducing further relaxations while keeping certain requirements in mind in view of a third Covid wave.

The Maharashtra Covid-19 task force has discussed the possibility of granting more relaxations in restrictions while observing precautions, and also deliberated on tackling the possible third wave of the pandemic, the requirement for medical oxygen and increasing the pace of vaccination, an official said.A meeting of the task force, held on Monday evening, was attended by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, state Chief Secretary Sitaram Kunte, Covid-19 task force head Dr Sanjay Oak and other members.ALSO READ | Covid curbs eased in Pune: Timings of shops, restaurants extended; malls to reopen “The state government is now preparing new guidelines after receiving various suggestions and instructions from doctors, experts and government departments. The focus of the discussion was basically on how to introduce further relaxations while observing precautions,” said a government official, who attended the meeting. He said the government is listing new areas where more relaxations can be introduced.The task force also discussed issues related to the tackling of the possible third wave of the pandemic, the requirement of medical oxygen, increasing the pace of vaccination, effective implementation of tracing and tracking, among others, he said. The state government had excluded malls, cinema halls, theatres, religious places and religious gatherings from the purview of relaxation introduced last week. The government had allowed shops to function till 8 pm in 25 districts, while excluding 11 districts where level-3 restrictions continue to remain in force due to a higher COVID-19 positivity rate.ALSO READ | Maharashtra govt's unlocking order upsets hospitality industry, retailers happy