Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (SP)
Mangaluru, Mar 26: In most parts of the city on Thursday morning, people were seen queued up at grocery stores but maintaining the social distance of six feet advised by the administration. However, in grocery shops at Car Street and Balmatta social distance norm was not followed by the buyers. Police were repeatedly alerting the citizens to maintain minimum six feet distance on public address system.
Retail vegetable vendors vied with each other at the central market, morning to buy potato and onions in particular.
Truckloads of vegetables which arrived at the market from outside the state commanded enormous demand. The vendors, driven by the urge to buy the things they needed at the earliest, forgot the need to maintain social distance. Even though the vendors lined up to buy the things, they did not maintain the minimum distance between them.
Even though the wholesalers repeatedly pleaded with the retailers to observe social distancing, their pleas fell on deaf ears.
The district administration has barred the entry of the general public into the central market on Thursday. Retailers alone are permitted to buy vegetables, fruits and provisions. They have been given time from 6 am to 10 am.
The people who want to buy things have to go to local shops. They can buy things between 6 am and 12 pm. The citizens of the city finally seem to have woken up to the need to maintain distance between them. They were seen taking care to stand apart with considerable distance. At Mallikatta market, the people were seen to be behaving with discipline. Even though no safely lines were drawn there, the people were seen maintaining distance of two feet between one another. The merchants are seen doing their bit by repeatedly reminding the customers to maintain distance.
The merchants who fail to ensure social distancing in queues have been warned of punitive action by the city corporation here. The people are seen maintaining gap in the queues in front of medical stores, super markets and other places.