The nation-wide lockdown to contain the COVID-19 pandemic will be extended by another 2 weeks from May 4 until May 17, according to a Ministry of Home Affairs order. Aarogya Setu has been made mandatory for all employees, both public and private. The head of the respective organisation will be responsible for ensuring "100% coverage of this app among employees". The order has been issued under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, and will divide the districts into Red, Green and Orange Zones. Zones will be classified as per a letter issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on April 30, and will be shared with states and union territories every week. In areas demarcated as Containment Zones (areas with significant risk of infection) within Red and Orange Zones, local authority will ensure that there is "100% coverage of Aarogya Setu app" among the residents. E-commerce operations are still restricted to only essential goods, but restrictions on physical shops have been significantly relaxed. Classification of zones Red (Hotspots) Zone: MoHFW will classify districts as Red Zones on the basis of total number of active cases, doubling rate of confirmed cases, extent of testing and surveillance feedback. No taxis, cab aggregators, cycle rickshaws, auto rickshaws, buses. Apart from this, 4-wheelers can operate only with 1 driver and 2 passengers (the MHA confirmed this to MediaNama), and 2-wheeler cannot have a pillion rider. In urban areas, manufacturing of IT hardware is allowed along with operations of SEZs, export oriented united, industrial…
