COVID-19: No local trains, 50% metro rail and govt buses from May 6, says Mamata Banerjee

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All local trains will be cancelled and metro rail and government buses would carry 50% of the passenger capacity in Bengal from May 6, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced.

Government offices, too, would work with 50% staff, while banks will open for business between 10 am and 2 pm, said the chief minister at a press conference.

She said the government was not going for a full lockdown and hoped that the restrictions would help in taming the infection curve.

Mamata Banerjee, who took oath as the chief minister of the state on Wednesday for the third time, rushed immediately afterwards to chair a meeting to finalise the response strategy to the COVID-19 infection that has fanned across Bengal, which many attribute to the unbridled campaign and polling over eight phases.

Local train shutdown

The suburban trains of Sealdah and Howrah section would not run from May 6, said the chief minister. The local trains that millions use every day to ply to and from Kolkata from the districts are regarded as the lifeline of bigger Kolkata almost like Mumbai.

These trains resumed their trips from November 11, 2020 after a lockdown period of more than eight months from March.

The case load of Bengal has reached such a stage that the state government was left with no option. “Shutting down the local train services will reduce the count of persons who are entering the city every day. This might help tackle the problem,” Mamata said.

Public transport

The state government also decided to run 50% of the government buses from Thursday. The government would also request Metro railway authorities to operate in a similar manner, told Mamata.

However, for the moment no restrictions were announced for private vehicles, cabs, auto rickshaws and two wheelers.

But flight and interstate bus or train passengers RTPCR tests will be mandatory within 72 hours before boarding. Otherwise, none will be allowed to enter the state, said the chief ministers.

Bank timing

The Chief Minister also said that all the banks will operate for four hours a day between 10 am and 2 pm every day.

Government offices, excluding emergency services, will be operational with 50% staff. The government urged private companies to work from home as much as possible.

Shops

Last week, the Chief Secretary issued a notification stating that all standalone shops and market places would remain open from 7 am to 10 am and 3 pm to 5 pm.

She tweaked the timing and pegged the new evening schedule between 5 pm to 7 pm. It will be effective from May 6 throughout the state.

Special timings for jewellers

Jewellers in Bengal submitted a memorandum to the chief minister urging her to allow them to remain open for business for 6 hours a day. The Chief Minister announced that these outlets would be allowed to remain open from 12 pm to 3 pm only.

No gathering related to any political/social/entertainment/sports activity would be allowed from Wednesday itself.

Tea gardens

The tea gardens in north Bengal will operate at 50% strength, as they had done last year.

The Darjeeling hills and Dooars region in north Bengal have a total of 283 tea gardens that employ more than 3 lakh permanent and casual workers.

Case load

Significantly, when the assembly election schedule was announced on February 26, the daily infection rate in the state was merely 216. But on May 4 it stood at 17,640 – a 81-time rise from the figure before the campaigning began.

Over the past 24 hours, almost 18,000 new cases were detected afresh in Bengal pushing the number of active cases to 1.21 lakh.

As many as 107 patients died of the disease taking the number of total deaths to 11,744.

The chief minister said that the total number of beds available in the state stood at 27,000 including safe homes. Of the hospital beds, 1,838 were ICU and 1,285 had ventilation support.

This total bed count is expected to cross 30,000 this week.

The hospital beds earmarked for COVID patients was 16,010 till Wednesday. Another 1,200 beds would be added within next Sunday, government sources said.

Safe homes have about 12,000 beds.