After the 2 month nationwide lockdown, which was imposed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Central Government vide an order dated May 30, 2020 (“Central Order”) has announced its three-phased strategy to lift the lockdown and allow establishments to reopen.

The nationwide lockdown, however, would continue to be implemented in the containment zones till June 30, 2020. Consequently, the Central Government and various State Governments have issued guidelines that provide instructions on phased re-opening of areas outside the containment zones.

Since our previous update, we have set out the key takeaways below, as on June 1, 2020, 6 pm (IST):

A.       GUIDELINES FOR PHASED RE-OPENING

1.       In areas outside the containment zones, all activities will be permitted in a phased manner. However,  the activities mentioned below will be allowed subject to adherence to the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), which are yet to be prescribed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), for ensuring social distancing and to contain the spread of COVID-19

2.       National Directives for COVID-19 management at workplace remain the same. Employers are required to:

a.       allow employees to work from home, as far as possible;

b.       mandate wearing of masks in the work place;

c.       ensure social distancing through staggered lunch breaks, and adequate gaps between shifts;

d.       provide for thermal screening, hand wash and sanitizers at all entry and exit points and common areas;

e.       have frequent sanitization of the workplace; and

f.       stagger work/business hours to be followed in offices, work places, shops, markets and industrial & commercial establishments.

3.      Night Curfew: The movement of individuals for non-essential activities is strictly prohibited between 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.

4.       Restrictions in the Containment Zones:

a.       Only essential activities to be allowed;

b.       Persons will be permitted to enter or exit a containment zone only for medical emergencies and to ensure the supply of essential goods and services;

c.       Containment Zones to be demarcated by the district authorities after taking into consideration the guidelines issued by MoHFW; and

d.     States/ UTs may also identify buffer zones outside the containment zones, where new cases are likely to occur. Further restrictions as considered necessary may be put within the buffer zones by the district authorities.

5.     States/UTs may further prohibit certain activities or impose restrictions outside the containment zones, based on assessment of the situation.

6.       Unrestricted movement of persons and goods:

a.       No restriction on inter- state and intra- state movement of persons and goods;

b.      No requirement of a separate e-pass or permission for such movements. However, states/ UTs may further regulate movement of persons based on assessment of the situation;

c.       Movement by passenger trains and Shramik special trains, domestic passenger air travels, movement of Indian Nationals stranded outside the country, evacuation of foreign nationals etc. will continue to be regulated as per SOPs issued.

7.       Use of Aarogya Setu: Employers to continue ensuring, on a best effort basis, that employees who have compatible mobile phones install the Aarogya Setu application.

B.       State-wise updates

Soon after the Central Order was issued, state governments including in Maharashtra, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Karnataka, Telangana, Gujarat, West Bengal, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu have issued guidelines to implement the Central Order. In addition to the restrictions and relaxations provided under the Central Order, certain key developments across the following states are mentioned below:

(i)      Maharashtra:  

The Government of Maharashtra, on May 31, 2020, extended the lockdown in the State till June 30, 2020 and issued guidelines for phased re-opening. Certain activities remain prohibited throughout the State viz. educational and coaching institutes, religious places, shopping malls, hotels, restaurants and other hospitality services.

In Municipal Corporations of MMR Region including MCGM, Municipal Corporations of Pune, Solapur, Aurangabad, Malegaon, Nashik, Dhule, Jalgaon, Akola, Amravati and Nagpur, in addition to the already permitted activities, following are allowed to function with restrictions:

In the rest of the State, all activities which are not explicitly prohibited are permitted and no permission is required for the same.

 (ii)    Telangana

The Government of Telangana, vide an order dated May 31, 2020 has decided to extend the lockdown in containment zones till June 30, 2020. For areas outside the containment zones, the existing lockdown order, dated May 18, 2020, has been extended till June 7, 2020, with the following modifications:

1.       Restriction on movement of persons between 9:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m., except for medical emergencies;

2.       All shops and establishments to remain closed after 8:00 p.m., except hospitals and pharmacies; and

3.       No restriction on inter-state movement of persons and no requirement of separate permission for such movement.

(iii)   Delhi

Pursuant to the Central Order, Delhi has extended the lockdown period in the containment zones till June 30, 2020. The key details from the guidelines are set out below:

1.      All activities will be permitted, except the ones which are specifically prohibited. However, in containment zones, only essential activities are allowed to operate.

2.      Certain activities remain prohibited in the entire state during the lockdown period, until further orders. These activities inter alia include, educational and coaching institutes, religious places, shopping malls, hotels, restaurants and other hospitality services with exceptions, cinema halls, large congregations etc.

3.      Permitted activities, subject to prescribed restrictions, inter alia, includes the below:

a.     Functioning of all private and government offices in full strength. However, for private offices, work from home to be encouraged to the extent possible.

b.       Functioning of industrial establishments.

c.       Intra-state movement of buses, subject to certain conditions.

d.       Restaurants to operate their kitchens for home delivery and takeaway of food items.

e.       All market and market complexes to remain open

(iv)    Karnataka

The Government of Karnataka, vide an order dated May 30, 2020 has extended the lockdown in containment zones till June 30, 2020 and has implemented guidelines in line with the Central Guidelines.

Please see here for our dedicated COVID – 19 legal resource page.