Liquor Shop Rush Worries Uddhav Thackeray About Coronavirus Spike

Uddhav Thackeray has expressed concern over people gathering in some cities (File)

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray - who has set an ambitious target of zero cases of coronavirus by the end of this month - today expressed concern over people gathering on the roads in some cities the moment lockdown was relaxed.

"Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has expressed concern over people gathering in some cities the moment there is even a slight relaxation and has asked authorities to take care to ensure lockdown is followed. He has reiterated the need to ensure Maharashtra is entirely a green zone by end of May," a statement from the Chief Minister's office said.

He has also has asked authorities to ensure that the lockdown rules are followed. In Mumbai and other areas, several liquor shops saw crowds gathering as they opened after a long gap. The Mumbai Police has now stepped in to ensure that order is maintained and the lockdown is enforced strictly.

"Bandobast is being deployed at all liquor shops to prevent overcrowding. Patrolling is being intensified. Strict action will be taken against all violators of the lockdown guidelines," a statement from the Mumbai Police said.

After more than a month, restrictions were eased across the country in non-hotspot areas. But soon after, huge crowds were seen in some areas, especially outside liquor shops, which opened for the first time today since the lockdown was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 25.

In various cities, including the national capital, people were seen jostling, giving a go-by to all rules of social distancing. In Delhi, the police was forced to shut the liquor vends shortly after they opened.

Mr Thackeray, whose state so far had more than 13,000 cases of coronavirus - the highest in the country - has set himself the ambitious target of making Maharashtra coronavirus-free by the end of this month.

Today, reiterating the need to ensure Maharashtra is a green zone by the end of May, he said: "The Chief Minister has instructed district collector and other authorities including medical authorities that he wants concrete results in the coming days."

He said enforcing the lockdown was the easy part and starting to lift it will be the real test.

He also added that there have been complaints from certain parts of the state that "people are not following lockdown rules strictly but he hoped the authorities will continue to try to enforce as they have been doing," the statement from the Chief Minister's Office said.

To this end, the government has not allowed private offices to open despite a permission given by Centre for red zone areas areas.

"All offices in green and orange should maintain all social distancing norms so that these areas don't slip back into red zones," the statement said. "The Chief Minister has received reports of Police Personnel and medical staff contracting Covid19 which is worrisome," the statement added.

As far as Mumbai is concerned, the government is very cautious about what it can allow to open in the country's financial capital. The police are enforcing a strict curfew at night and all movement except for all non-essential activities, except for medical reasons are prohibited, according to a police circular. Prohibitory orders are also in place.