Mumbai petrol pumps to operate for only 12 hours till March 31 over Coronavirus outbreak

In the wake of the dreaded Coronavirus Pandemic, the Petrol Dealers Association (PDA) in Mumbai has decided to operate Mumbai's petrol pumps from 7 am to 7 pm starting from Monday, March 23 to March 31 adding that the situation will be reviewed and revised at the end of the month.

The PDA's former president Ravi Shinde has asserted that the curtailed working hours of petrol pumps is an attempt to reduce risk of exposure to the pump attendants and yet keep the essential service open to public albeit in limited hours. He added that the salaries of the pump attendants will not be deducted in the wake of the testing times. 

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While Mumbai petrol pumps will be working for 12 hours, the Pune Petrol Dealers Association has decided to operate the petrol pumps in the city from 8 am to 4 pm from March 22 to March 31. Mumbai's PDA has added that petrol pumps in Mumbai will have skeleton staff on March 22, Sunday to support the prime minister's clarion call of Janata Curfew to contain the spread of the virus.

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Janata Curfew on March 22

In a bid to contain the spread of the deadly virus in the country, PM Modi has called for a Janata Curfew on March 22. While addressing the nation on March 19 the prime minister appealed to all the citizens to go under self-quarantine and not to step out of their homes on Sunday from 7 am to 9 pm on Sunday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi talked extensively about the challenges caused due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He stressed that “resolve” and “restraint” were the two most important things to be followed.

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PM Modi also appealed to every to pay tribute to all essential officials like doctors, government officials, journalists, etc who were working. A day after his address to the nation, PM Modi also chaired a video conferencing with chief ministers of various states to fight the pandemic. The total number of Coronavirus cases in India has risen to 298 in the country with four deaths, while 22 cases have fully recovered and discharged.

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