Queues, traffic snarls continue in 4-hour lockdown relaxation in Hyderabad

Hyderabad: The four-hour relaxation in lockdown restrictions in the State went smoothly on Thursday. People continued to make beeline to buy provisions and other essential commodities starting 6 am. While the queues at the supermarkets initially were thin, people continued to crowd the vegetable markets at various locations in the city. Some were spotted buying products to stock up till the end of the lockdown.

With Ramzan festival on Friday, most of the business locations of the old city bustled with activity during the lockdown relaxation. Shoppers thronged the markets around Charminar to make the last minute festival purchases including clothes, garments, footwear etc.
On the other hand, the State government’s Rs 5 meals as part of the Annapurna scheme came as a boon for daily wage earners and the homeless, and in some places they were seen taking food with them for rest of the day also.

Most of the restaurants remained closed on day-2 of the lockdown, while small hotels and tiffin centres were operational from 6 am to 10 am. “On the first day of the lockdown, we did not open the tiffin centre. Today, we opened and did nominal business in the given four hours,” said Shiva who works for a tiffin centre in the Narayanguda area. Tipplers continued to line up to purchase liquor at several wine shops across the city.

As the relaxation time came to end, traffic on the city roads increased with brief jams at some places, and at many other places the vehicles moved bumper to bumper. By 10 am, the traffic at most places became thin.

While several shop owners closed even before the scheduled time, some were making brisk business until the police patrols arrived asking them to shut down the shops.

To control the movement of the vehicles, police have put up barricades at several junctions and roads across the city. The motorists and riders were given a breather for some time to commute to their destinations. Later, the police carried out vehicle checks and only those belonging to the essential services were allowed to travel.

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