The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on August 29 released guidelines for ‘Unlock 4.0’ which will begin on September 1 upon completion of ‘Unlock 3.0’ on August 31. ‘Unlock 4.0’ will extend until September 30.
A strict lockdown will continue in the containment zones, the ministry said. Adding to relaxations made during the first three stages of ‘Unlock’, the Centre has permitted social/academic/sports/cultural/religious congregations, among others, to be held with a ceiling of 100 persons. This will be effective from September 21.
Easing some restrictions on public transport, the Centre has said that metro rail services can resume in a graded manner starting from September 7.
Additionally, there will be no restriction on inter-state and intra-state movement of persons and goods. No separate permission or e-permit will be required for such movements.
Also read: Unlock 4 guidelines | What's allowed and what's not
Schools, colleges and other educational institutions will remain closed until September 30. Cinema halls, swimming pools, entertainment parks and theatres (excluding open air theatre) will remain shut.
However, all individuals and establishments will have to maintain physical distancing norms and safety protocols.
Yet, states and Union Territory administrations will be allowed to retain restrictions, when deemed necessary. While states and UTs can still refuse to permit some activities allowed by the central government, they cannot give relaxations for activities that have not been allowed by the Centre yet.
Lockdown in Tamil Nadu has been extended till September 30 with major relaxations for the state, announced Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on August 30.
Under relaxed norms, there will be no complete lockdown on Sundays in the month of September. The government has also scrapped the e-pass system requirement for inter-district travel. All places of worship, hotels and resorts have been allowed to re-open. According to the fresh guidelines, shops outside containment zones will be permitted to open till 8 pm.
Intra-district bus service can resume from September 1 while Chennai Metro has been allowed to resume services from September 7. E-passes will, however, continue to be required for people arriving in the state by air or rail, and travel to Ooty and Kodaikanal and other hill stations.
The state's government also announced that film shooting can resume with a maximum of 75 crew members on set at any given time. However, spectators are not permitted.
Industries, government offices and banks will be allowed to function with 100 percent of staff unlike earlier when they were allowed to operate with a cap 50 percent. However, all workplaces are being advised to continue work-from-home if possible.
According to the State Health Department, Tamil Nadu reported over 6,000 fresh COVID-19 cases on August 29, pushing the overall tally to 4,15,590, as death toll stood at 7,137, including 87 new fatalities.
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