Maharashtra’s new COVID-19 guidelines: All your questions answered

Section 144 has been imposed across the entire state from April 5.
According to the new rules, no more than five persons can move together or gather in public places between 7 am and 8 pm from Monday to Friday.
Between 8 pm and 7 am, no individual will be allowed to move in public places without valid reason or without permission. Medical and essential services staff will be exempted from these norms.

Hospitals, diagnostic centres, clinics, medical insurance offices, pharmacies, pharmaceutical companies, other media and health services are being considered as essential services. Other essential services include groceries, vegetable and fruit shops, dairies, bakeries, confectionery and food shops. Public transport including trains, taxis, autos and public buses will remain available. Services related to functioning of offices of diplomats of various countries, pre-monsoon activities by local authorities, all public services by local authorities, transportation of goods, agriculture-related services, e-commerce, accredited media and services designated as essential by local disaster management authority will also be allowed.

Subsequently on April 5, the state government added petrol pumps and petroleum related products, all cargo services, data centres/cloud service providers/IT services supporting critical infrastructure and services, government and private security services and fruit vendors to the list of essential services.

All beaches/gardens/public grounds will remain closed from 8 pm to 7 am on weekdays, and from 8 pm on Fridays to 7 am on Mondays. People are expected to follow COVID-appropriate behaviour strictly between 7 am to 8 pm from Monday to Friday.

All shops, markets and malls will remain closed throughout the day except for essential services.

All public transport services in Maharashtra will remain fully operational with some restrictions.

Auto: Rickshaw Driver + Two passengers only

Taxi (4 wheelers): Driver + 50 percent vehicle capacity as per RTO

Bus: Full seating occupancy as per RTO passing.

However, no standing passengers will be allowed. All vehicles are to be sanitised after every trip.

Fines and penalties for non-compliance: All persons using public transport will have to wear a mask properly. A fine of Rs 500 will be imposed on offenders. In a four-wheeler taxi, if any one person is not wearing mask, the offender and the driver of the taxi will be fined an amount of Rs 500 each, according to the new rules.

Persons arriving/departing by train/bus/flight between 8.00 pm and 7.00 am or on weekends may travel to the airport/bus station/train station or back home from the same on the basis of a valid ticket.

Industrial workers travelling by private buses/private vehicle will be allowed to commute on the basis of an identity card between 8.00 pm and 7.00 am and during weekends to attend his/her shift.

All restaurants and bars will remain closed, except for those inside the premises of and are integral parts of hotels.

Weekdays: However, take away orders, parcels and home delivery services will be allowed for all restaurants between 7.00 am and 8.00 pm from Monday to Friday.

Weekends: Home delivery services shall be allowed between 7 am to 8 pm and people will not be allowed to visit any restaurant or bar for ordering purposes or pickups. Restaurants and bars inside hotels will be open only for in-house guests. In no circumstance should outside guests be allowed.

There will be no serving of food for eating at such spots. However, parcels or home deliveries will be allowed from 7 am to 8 pm every day.

The Maharashtra government has instructed all private offices to remain shut and people in such establishments will have to work from home. However, cooperative, PSU and private banks, BSE and NSE, electric supply-related companies, telecom service providers, insurance/mediclaim companies, and pharmaceutical firms’ offices needed for management of production and distribution will be allowed to remain open.

Government offices will function at 50 percent capacity except those required for COVID-19 response wherein they will work at 100 percent strength as per the decision of the HOD of the department/ office. No visitors will be allowed in government offices as well as government companies. Offices have been urged to start e-visitor system at the earliest.

Private vehicles including private buses can run normally from 7 am to 8 pm from Monday to Friday and for emergency or essential services for rest of the period (8 pm to 7 am on weekdays and 8 pm on Friday to 7 am on Monday).

All cinema halls, drama theatres, auditoriums, amusement parks, arcades, video game parlours, water parks, clubs, swimming pools, gyms and sports complexes will remain closed.

Shooting for films, serials and advertisements will be allowed, subject to: avoiding large crowds and large numbers of artists. All staff members need to carry a negative RT-PCR test certificate valid for 15 days. This order will operate from April 10, 2021.A quarantine bubble may be created for the artists and staff.

All religious places of worship will remain closed. All personnel engaged in the service of the place of workshop shall continue to perform their duties though no outside visitor shall be allowed.

Barber shops, spas, salons and beauty parlors will remain closed.

According to the new rules, newspapers can be printed and circulated. However, home delivery of newspapers will only happen between 7 am and 8 pm on all days.

All schools, colleges and other educational institutions will remain closed. The Maharashtra government had already announced that students from the state education board – from standard 1 to 8 – will be automatically passed and promoted to the next academic year.

The Maharashtra government has relaxed the above rule for standard 10 and 12 students “to the extent of exams”. While more clarity is awaited on this matter, it is likely that the exams will happen as planned.

The Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) exam will start from April 23, while the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) will begin from April 29, the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) had announced earlier.

Any student requiring to physically attend an exam will be allowed to travel to the examination center and back home after 8.00 pm or on weekends subject to carrying a valid hall ticket.

All the staff that may be necessary for conducting examinations must be either vaccinated or should carry a negative RT-PCR certificate, valid for 48 hours. “For exams that are being conducted by any board, university or authority outside the state, denial of which may lead to hardships for students residing in Maharashtra may be allowed by concerned department under intimation to concern disaster management authority,” the rules suggest.

Essential services shops inside premises of malls and markets can operate with social distancing. Extra customers will have to be kept waiting outside with adequate social distancing with markings wherever possible. Owners of essential shops and person working there have been urged to get vaccinated at the earliest, as per Centre’s criteria. All shops are advised to follow safety measures like interaction with customers through a transparent glass or other material shields, encouraging electronic payments, etc.

No religious, social, cultural or political functions of any kind to be allowed. Marriages will be allowed with a maximum of 50 people present. Funerals will be allowed with maximum of 20 people.

The state government has urged all eligible persons to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as possible.