Pune: On the first day of time restrictions, on Wednesday, for stores selling necessary commodities in Pune – 7 am to 11 am – huge crowds were seen over the city seeking to beat the deadline.
A massive rush at markets, grocery shops and vegetable vendors was the result.
At one of the major vegetable markets in Pune, the Mandai market, people started pushing from 6 am.
At 9 am, there was such a huge crowd inside the market area where no proper social distancing was possible. “I had gone to buy some vegetables at Mandai market in the morning when I saw the crowd, I returned. The decision of limiting the timing is leading to more rush,” said Kiran Pisal, a local resident.
An alike situation was seen on the other main roads. In Hadapsar, at Gadital chowk residents gathered to buy groceries. Outside kirana shops, long queues were seen by 8 am.
Secretary of the Sinhgad road-Warje residents association, Atul Namekar, said, “On Sinhagad road, from Rajaram bridge chowk till Bramha hotel chowk, the entire footpath is crowded with roadside vendors. People rushed to buy vegetables, groceries and other food items as if it was the last day before lockdown. By doing this they are risking their own and lives of others too, as there might be by many Covid positive patients or carriers amongst them.”
“There was a heavy rush on the Jambhulwadi road to buy household items and vegetables. The road had a traffic jam before 11 am. Our demand is that this limitation should be removed immediately,” said Vaibhav Dhekane, executive president of Dattanagar Jambhulwadi road traders’ organisation.
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