The Sunday curfew implemented by the Karnataka government has been called off for this week. In the order released by the state Chief Secretary T M Vijaybhaskar, it stated that the curfew was withdrawn after requests by the public and that the services would run between 7 am and 7 pm.
As the order came into being, Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) announced that about 3,500 of its buses will be in service. The Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) has also agreed to operate its regular services on Sunday, May 31 following the order.
Sunday curfew called off
In its order released on implementing the Sunday curfew on May 24, the Bangalore City Police had said the curfew will be stringent and warned people not to venture out of their houses unnecessarily.
No vehicular movements were allowed in the city from 7 pm on Saturday to 7 am on Monday. The lockdown for the day was said to resemble the first two phases of the national lockdown.
Yet, all these measures went for a toss on its first Sunday as most of the vehicles were seen plying on the roads, throughout the day. Although hefty penalties were said to be imposed on unnecessary travels, no such cases were registered by the officers either. Most of the vehicle owners stopped by the traffic police officials were simply left away with strict warnings.
All commercial establishments including MRP outlets for alcohol and clothing stores were asked to shut down its services for the day.
Pharmacies, grocery stores, and hospitals along with the restaurants and hotels that can let parcel services were allowed to be open. Taxi and autos, meanwhile, should not ply if not for emergencies, said the authorities.
Meanwhile, the KSRTC has finally banned spitting in its buses and bus stands. In its latest order released, the transport body stated that those caught doing the actions will be slapped a fine of Rs 100 hereafter.
