Mumbai :In view of the growing resentment among restaurant owners and shopkeepers from those select districts where Maharashtra has not relaxed the coronavirus-enforced lockdown, Maharashtra chief minister (CM) Uddhav Thackeray has appealed to them to exercise restraint. He also said the government is considering various options over resuming local train travel for the general public.This was against the backdrop of Maharashtra on Thursday recording 6,695 new cases, along with 120 deaths, taking the total number of cases to 6,336,220.

Thackeray said that all decisions will be made with the intention to safeguard people’s lives due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Thackeray stressed that the Covid-19 situation across the state has not fully improved as some districts are still showing large number of cases.

Speaking at the inauguration of a municipal ward office in Bandra, Thackeray said, “The lockdown isn’t permanent. When will the local [trains] start? We are considering the options. Like we have given relaxation for shops and establishments, other districts will also get them. But we will keep our responsibilities [towards people] in mind and then provide the relaxations.” Thackeray said that he could address the state through social media on these issues soon.

The demand to allow general people, who are fully vaccinated to use Mumbai suburban train services, have been coming from citizens, passenger organisations, political parties. However, the state has not issued any order regarding it. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), in its order on August 2, did not make any mention of reopening train services for all.

The state government in its order issued on August 2 has not given relaxation in curbs in 11 districts, including Pune, Kolhapur, Satara, Sangli, Solapur, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Ahmednagar, Beed, Raigad and Palghar, as the weekly growth rate and positivity rate in these districts is higher than the state’s overall average.

Locals, including traders, hoteliers, shop-owners, among others in Pune, Palghar, Kolhapur, among other districts have been defying the state’s orders and keeping their shops open beyond the permitted operational hours. They held protests, demanding further relaxations on the lines of other districts.

Thackeray said, “Wherever we could provide relaxations we have given, but where we could not, it was out of no choice.” He further added, “I appeal to the people and traders where we have not able to ease the curbs to keep their restraint. It is not that wherever relaxations are given, they are dear to us and others are not. We have to make these decisions, keeping the lives of people in mind.”Mumbai on Saturday recorded 327 new cases with nine deaths, with its toll reaching 15,929.There were 217,905 tests done on Thursday, while the number of recoveries clocked 7,120.