As the initial uncertainty and panic around the supply of essential commodities during lockdown slowly settles down, many towns and villages are using simple, creative and resourceful ways to avoid crowding and ensure social distancing. Across towns and cities, civic bodies, district officials and police officers have been ensuring that people in queues at markets, stores, ATMs, etc. are physically standing apart, by making grids, boxes, lines, or circles on the ground. And so far, this method seems to be effective.
In Andhra Pradesh, the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation moved farmers’ markets, or Rythu Bazars, to stadium grounds or government school premises to decongest the market areas. The Ajit Singh Nagar and Payakapuram markets were shifted to the Makineni Basavapunnaiah stadium grounds, so that vendors can also set up shop with enough distance between each other.
Wide grids were drawn on the stadium grounds, with customers standing in the middle of their square, advancing one block at a time.
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Makineni Basavapunnaiah Stadium, Vijayawada
Even super markets in Vijayawada like D Mart, Reliance and Big Bazar took similar measures while customers enter the stores or while they wait in line for billing. The number of customers allowed inside the store at a given time has also been limited.
Super markets in Vijayawada
Police officers are making markings in front of ATMs in Mahabubnagar town.
— Rema Rajeshwari IPS (@rama_rajeswari) March 24, 2020
To help the citizens to follow #SocialDistancing#IndiaFightsCorona pic.twitter.com/8G0OOc7T4H
Mahabubnagar District Administration converted the RTC bus stand into vegetable market to enable #Social_Distancing #IndiaFightsCoronavirus pic.twitter.com/7uAzPRYX9a
— Rema Rajeshwari IPS (@rama_rajeswari) March 26, 2020
There’s only one way out. To fight #Corona #Social_Distancing #Social_Distancing #Social_Distancing
— Rema Rajeshwari IPS (@rama_rajeswari) March 24, 2020
Precisely why officers of @MBNRpolice go beyond their core duty to ensure this by marking spots with adequate distance in front of establishments selling essentials. pic.twitter.com/UJ45IJ0GMC
Mysuru city police did the same, in front of medical stores and milk parlours, as did the Bengaluru police.
ಕೋವಿಡ್-19 ಸಂಬಂಧ ಮೈಸೂರು ನಗರ ಪೊಲೀಸರಿಂದ ದಿನನಿತ್ಯದ ಆಹಾರ ಪದಾರ್ಥಗಳನ್ನು ಖರೀದಿಸುವ ಸಾರ್ವಜನಿಕರಿಗೆ ಆರೋಗ್ಯದ ದೃಷ್ಟಿಯಿಂದ ನಡುವೆ ಅಂತರವನ್ನು ಕಾಯ್ದುಕೊಳ್ಳುವ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಮುಂಜಾಗ್ರತೆವಹಿಸಿ 1ಮೀಟರ್ ಅಂತರ ಮಾರ್ಕಿಂಗ್ ಮಾಡಿಸಿ ಆರೋಗ್ಯ ಕಾಪಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳಲು ಅನುಕೂಲ ಮಾಡಿರುತ್ತಾರೆ. pic.twitter.com/dhE7txpMDU
— MYSURU CITY POLICE (@CPMysuru) March 25, 2020
— BengaluruTrafficPolice (@blrcitytraffic) March 25, 2020
Shops in Chennai’s Perungudi also marked boxes for social distanced queues, while the Amma canteens, which remained open, marked the distance with lines.
#Day2 #SocialDistancing measures like 1 m distance marking practised in some of the shops in #Chennai .More shops to follow suit soon.
— Alby John (@albyjohnV) March 26, 2020
These pictures are from Perungudi, Chennai. #ChennaiLockDown #StayHomeStaySafe pic.twitter.com/WhamQlGr54
Amma Unavagamas in Chennai to follow #SocialDistancing norms. All the Amma Unavagams in the city will be open throughout the lock down period. #coronavirusindia pic.twitter.com/LwyEARit9e
— Alby John (@albyjohnV) March 25, 2020
In Tirupati, long queues visiting the market moved rapidly thanks to the social distancing grids.
Tirupati
In Guntakal town of Andhra’s Anantapur district, huge grounds are being used to have similarly spacious markets and queues.
Railways Fights #COVID2019: Maintaining social distancing in this hour of need, Railways is helping decongest vegetable markets in open grounds in Guntakal, Andhra Pradesh for the safety of the citizens as well as the Railways staff. pic.twitter.com/fWgPS3OoJU
— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) March 26, 2020
Scenes from a farmers’ market in Tamil Nadu’s Pudukkottai also showed vendors’ stalls separated with makeshift rope fences.
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