COVID: Markets reopen in Srinagar after weekend curfew

SRINAGAR –  The markets in the summer capital, Srinagar, reopened on Monday after remaining closed for 60 hours in view of weekend curfew imposed to check the spread of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir government on Sunday announced that there will be no weekend lockdown in 16 districts even as it extended the closure of educational institutions till the end of this month. Srinagar and Kupwara are the only two districts in Kashmir where weekend continued.

Shops and business establishments reopened and traffic was plying on all routes normally in Srinagar, where some busy routes witnessed traffic jams in civil lines and uptown.

All the shops reopen in the main business hubs in civil lines, including Hari Singh High Street, Gonikhan, Residency Road, Maulana Azad Road, Mahraj Bazar, Batamaloo, Iqbal Park, Dalgate, Regal Chowk and Budshah Chowk.

As per a government order, the 16 districts in which the weekend curfew has been lifted include Jammu, Kathua, Samba, Poonch, Rajouri, Kishtwar, Ramban, Udhampur, Anantnag, Bandipora, Baramulla, Budgam, Ganderbal, Pulwama, Kulgam and Shopian. “Restaurants and Bars can open for in-dining from 0700 hours till 2200 hours at 50 per cent of its total capacity, only for the customers who are vaccinated or carrying a negative RT-PCR or RAT report of 48 hours prior,” reads the order by Chief Secretary, Arun Kumar Mehta, who is also the Chairperson, State Executive Committee.

The daily night curfew, however, will continue from 2000 hrs to 0700 hrs in these districts.

The further relaxation in restrictions was ordered by the administration in view of significant decline in the number of COVID-19 cases in the Union Territory.