Cinema malls, swimming pools in Delhi to likely get orders to resume

After a long shutdown for over six months amid pandemic, the cinema halls and swimming pools in Delhi are likely to be resumed in a restricted manner. The government is now all set to issue orders regarding these decisions on Thursday i.e., a day after the central government issued guidelines for the further relaxation of COVID-19 restrictions in the country. Cinema halls and swimming pools are likely to be allowed to reopen only from October 15.

The guidelines will apply in Delhi once they are notified through a separate order by Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) which is chaired by lieutenant governor Anil Baijal.

The Centre’s guidelines also informed that the decisions for opening schools and coaching institutions in a graded manner can be taken by the states and Union Territories after October 15 “in consultation with the respective school/institution management, based on their assessment of the situation”. However, if students preferred to attend online classes, they would be permitted to do so. The guidelines said attendance must not be enforced and must depend entirely on parental consent.

Officials of the Delhi government’s education department will hold a meeting on Thursday to discuss the rules issued by the Centre. “(We will) go through the guidelines, consult stakeholders, and take the decision on the reopening of schools in the national capital. We will hold a meeting on Thursday,” a senior official from Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia’s office said on condition of anonymity.

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The Union home ministry on Wednesday said cinema halls, multiplexes, and theatres will be allowed to open from October 15 in areas outside containment zones. But they shall have to operate at 50% seating capacity, it said, adding that detailed standard operating procedures will be issued soon by the Union information and broadcasting ministry.

In Delhi, cinema halls, multiplexes, and theatres have been closed since March 12. They were shut days before the nationwide lockdown came into effect on March 25 to slow the spread of the pandemic.

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