What to Expect from Unlock 5.0 Guidelines to be Issued for October

The Union government is expected to come up with Unlock 5.0 guidelines for October 2020. It is to be seen what more relaxation will be offered in October as it will be a festive month. Under Unlock 4.0, the government had already allowed salons, restaurants, gyms and malls to function with restrictions. Besides, metro trains services started in Delhi in September 2020.

However, cinema halls, swimming pools and entertainment parks have still not been opened to the public. People are expecting that the central government would allow cinema halls to operate in Unlock 5.0 with safety measures. The Multiplex Association of India has also requested the government to allow cinema halls to open. On the other hand, open-air theatres started functioning from September 21.

Meanwhile, the Maharashtra government has decided to let restaurants in the state to provide dine-in service from the first week of October. As people across the country are waiting for more relaxations under Unlock 5.0, here is what they could get from October.

Cinema halls

The West Bengal government has allowed cinema halls to function from October 1 with limited number of audience. Cinema halls will not be running house-packed shows.

“To return to normalcy, Jatras, Plays, OATs, Cinemas & all musical, dance, recital and magic shows shall be allowed to function with 50 participants or less from October 1,” The Indian Express reported quoting West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

It is not sure if the Union government will let cinema halls to run shows from next month.

Tourism

Tourism industry has been one of the worst hit by the coronavirus pandemic. But, there appears to be a ray of hope for the industry. The Sikkim government has decided to allow hotels, home-stays and other tourism-related services to resume operations from October 10.

Apart from Sikkim, the Uttarakhand government has provided some relaxations to the tourists. They are no longer required to carry COVID-19 negative report to visit the state and book a minimum two-day stay at hotels anymore.

The Kerala government is also preparing to open the state to domestic tourists from the first week of October.

People will also be allowed to visit tourist spots in Odisha from next month. PTI reported quoting Odisha Tourism Minister JP Panigrahi that tourist spots will be reopened from October with strict adherence to COVID-19 guidelines.