Punjab CM issues new orders to facilitate supply of essentials, management of curfew
Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday has issued a fresh set of directives to the police and civil administration, including detailed instructions for issuance of passes to maintain critical systems and services in an order to ensure that the people are not inconvenienced amid coronavirus crisis.
Meanwhile, Captain Amarinder has constituted a Committee under the chairmanship of ACS (Industry & Commerce) to oversee the procurement processes for all COVID-19 related items. The DCs have been asked by the Chief Minister to contact PSHFW and MD, PHSC, with the facility of sending advance indents to facilitate early procurements. These materials include PPE kits, masks, medicines, etc.
At the same time, Captain Amarinder has ordered that the requisite protocol issued by the Health Department for testing of suspected cases should be followed meticulously. Further, compliance of protocol issued by the Health Department vides Letter No. ISDP/PB/2020/660-1725 dated 22/3/2020 should be strictly ensured.
The Chief Minister has directed that the work should continue unabated. He has also directed the health department and police to ensure further monitoring of those already traced and placed under home quarantine.
Captain Amarinder assured the people. He has directed the police and administrative officials to ensure that door-to-door delivery of essential services is maintained for the desired/prescribed period and it may, as far as possible, be further streamlined with the assistance of e-commerce companies/service providers.
The volunteers may also be engaged for ensuring prompt door-to-door delivery of essential services and commodities, the Chief Minister said. Meanwhile, the providers of essential services whether individuals (hawkers/delivery boys) or institutions should be allowed to operate for the fixed duration but on specific permissions, he added.
For special goods trains, the Department of Food has issued complete protocol. DCs should ensure the movement of these trains in keeping with these guidelines and the protocol issued by the Food Department.
As per the revised curfew management guidelines, government offices that have been designated in the Government of India’s order will be allowed to remain open with skeletal staff.
In order to ensure the supply of other essential services, specific State Government offices may also be required to remain open with minimal functional staff. Such employees of the State Government and those employees of Government of India that have been allowed to report on duty as per Government of India’s order will be allowed to travel from home to office on their institutional Identity Card, and specific curfew passes will not be necessary the revised guidelines states.
It is specifically provided in the guidelines that for employees of Governments including PSUs and SPUs, of Haryana, Punjab, and UT of Chandigarh who is residing in Mohali district (especially Mohali and Zirakpur) and are facing acute problems in reaching their offices, located in Chandigarh and Panchkula, it has been decided that they may be allowed to commute to their offices for official duty (not with their families or in groups) by showing their Official or Institutional Photo ID Cards and they would not be required to obtain special curfew passes.
All other Government employees will be directed to work from home and remain available on call should any such need arise.
While there would continue to be no general relaxation in curfew, if it is decided by the district administration in due course to relax it in a selected area, due care must be taken to avoid overcrowding and to observe prescribed social distancing, according to the guidelines.
The permissions may be given in the following manner:
* a) Permits may be issued for the fixed period that may be the period of curfew, to all those exempted by GOI/GOP. Such permits can even be in the form of authorization letters;
* b) Institutional Permits to the exempted institutions such as media houses, IOC/HPCL, Post Offices, Banks, Railways, Petrol Pumps, LPG Suppliers, etc. should be given through specific letters attaching therewith list of employees of each of such institutions. These employees should then be allowed to go to an office in duty hours on their institutional identity cards but they may not be allowed elsewhere such as markets, etc for their personal work;
* c) Those institutional permissions, which are issued for maintaining essential supplies (in the form of authorization letters - see specimen as per attachment) should clearly mention so and would be valid across the State;
* d) Individual passes may be given only in an emergency and if so required, such an individual may be permitted to use the vehicle but for a given purpose only; and
* e) Healthcare establishments (Hospitals, Nursing Homes, PHCs, CHCs), both private and government and their employees, should be given general permission to operate and their employees may be allowed to commute for duty/work on their institutional Identity Card.
To simplify the process, the issuance of passes has been tasked to various officers as follows:
* • DFSC: Food, ration and grocery shops, transportation of food grains, mandi labour and procurement related works;
* • Dy. Director Horticulture: Fruits and Vegetables;
* • Dy. Director Animal Husbandry: Milk Vendors and Suppliers and related movements;
* • GM DIC: Industries/industrialists/industrial labour;
* • DMO: Hawkers of any kind; Mandis and Purchase Centers, Arhtiyas;
* • CAO: Farmers and harvesting related movements; and
* • General passes for individuals and others: Asst. Commissioner (Gen.), SDM, Tehsildar or any other person specifically authorised by DC.
Also Read | Sukhbir Singh Badal requests CM to affect 50 % reduction in commercial power bills for three months
For each of the above, DCs should declare them authorised signatories and inform the district police accordingly. Due record of the passes to be issued by the authorized signatories must be maintained, as per the revised guidelines.
For the point-to-point movement of individuals or providers of essential goods and services, the passes can be issued by the authorised signatories at the origin, clearly giving address of destination and purpose of traveling.
-PTC News
