Noida (UP):
Optical shops which have not been categorised as “essential” service have been allowed to open with certain conditions in Noida and Greater Noida where Covid restrictions are still in place, the Gautam Buddh Nagar administration said on Wednesday.
The decision was taken following a request by the Gautam Buddh Nagar Opticals’ Association to the district administration in which it cited trouble to people over closure of eye-gear shops.
Granting the permission to open optical shops and showrooms, Additional District Magistrate Vandita Shrivastava said, Shop owner or staff from containment zone would be barred from entering the shops.
There has to be a 100 per cent compliance of Covid protocols like face cover/mask and availability of sanitiser in such shops besides social distancing and other measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19, she said in an order.
The ADM also ordered that all optical shop owners and staff members should mandatorily have ‘Aarogya Setu’ app on their mobile phones.
Violation of any condition would result in cancellation of the permission to open shop and legal proceedings would be initiated against the shop owner under the National Disaster Management Act, 2005 and Section 188 of the India Penal Code, she warned.
Gautam Buddh Nagar in western Uttar Pradesh, adjoining Delhi, had 843 active cases as on Tuesday. Curfew-like restrictions are imposed in the district due to the pandemic in which only people engaged in essential work are allowed outdoor movement and only essential services are allowed to open, like pharmacies, hospitals, milk and grocery outlets, etc.
The UP government has ordered that such restrictions would be lifted in districts that have less than 600 active cases of the coronavirus.
