Amid speculation that Mumbai local trains will soon be open to all, officials have clarified that there were no immediate plans to do so. Mumbai Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal had previously said that a recommendation will be made on allowing the general public to travel on local trains in Mumbai after monitoring the situation after the Christmas and New Year celebrations are over, according to the PTI news agency.
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“Depending on the situation during Christmas and New Year’s Eve, we can make the decision to restart the local trains,” he said. He also warned that if people continued to defy coronavirus restrictions, the government will be forced to impose a nightly curfew on the city, adding that he had written to the state government asking for a nightly curfew after seeing some nightclubs they operated at night.
“The government is not in favor of imposing a night curfew because it creates panic among the people. That is why he has decided to wait and watch until December 25, ”said Chahal.
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Mumbai local trains, the city’s lifeline, were opened to people on essential services on June 15 after being closed to everyone since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in March. Instead of the usual 1,200 passengers, the trains carried just 700 essential service providers to maintain social distancing norms.
Central and Western Railway had issued a statement saying that workers considered essential service providers will be able to travel on local trains if they have their identity cards. Later, BMC issued an electronic pass with a quick response code (QR) in an attempt to ensure fewer crowds on trains.
Mumbai recorded 654 new Covid-19 cases and 11 deaths on Friday, bringing the infection count to 2,89,343 and the death toll to 10,959.
(with PTI inputs)
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