Know the essential services to continue even during lockdown

Even as India is under a lockdown, supply of essential services will continue. Here is a list of services and establishments that will continue operations. This includes food, fuel, ATMs, Internet, cable services etc.

New Delhi: In order to prevent the prevention of coronavirus infection, there will be complete lockdown for the next three weeks from 12 o'clock on Tuesday night across the country, but in the meantime, along with shops of basic necessities like ration, milk, vegetables, fruits etc., banks, insurance companies, ATMs, print and electronic media establishments will remain open.

The Prime Minister, while addressing the nation on Tuesday, announced a complete lockdown across the country from midnight to the next 21 days. In view of the complete lockdown, the order issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs said that during the lockdown, the offices of subordinate and public sector companies, including the offices of the Government of India, its autonomous bodies, will remain closed.

But the services of Army, Central Armed Police Force, Treasury, Petroleum, CNG, PNG, LGP including Public Utilities, Energy Production and Distribution Units, Post Office, National Informatics Center, Early Warning Agencies will continue.

Essential services to continue even during lockdown

Similarly, the offices of government and autonomous bodies and public sector companies in the states and union territories will remain closed but the services of police, home guards, civil security, fire and emergency services, disaster management and prisons will continue. In addition, district administration, treasury, electricity, water, sanitation related services will continue.

However, there will be minimum staff in these offices as well and all the other officers can only work from home.

As per the order of the Ministry of Home Affairs, hospitals and related medical establishments which include government and private manufacturing and distribution units will remain open and transportation for medical, para medical and hospital staff is also allowed.

All types of commercial and private establishments in the country will remain closed during the lockdown. But food, groceries, fruit-vegetable shops, dairy, milk-booths, meat and fish, animal feed shops will be open, including ration shops operated under PDS i.e. PDS.

However, in order to reduce the movement of people outside the home, the district administration may encourage the facility of home delivery.

Offices of banks, ATMs, insurance companies will remain open. Establishments of print and electronic media will remain open. Telecom, Internet service, broadcast and cable services, IT and IT related services will be operated from homes as much as possible.

Delivery of all essential items including food items, medicines, medical equipment will be through e-commerce. Petrol pumps, LPG, petroleum and gas retail outlets and stores will remain open.

The services of Capital and Debt Markets notified by the Securities and Exchange Board of India i.e. SEBI will continue.

Cold storage and warehousing services will be restored.

Private security services will continue.

Except industrial units of essential commodities, all industrial establishments will remain closed.

Rail, road and air traffic will remain closed, but transportation of essential commodities will continue.

(IANS Report)