After witnessing chaotic scenes on Saturday, when people resorted to panic buying, the cities of Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai wore a deserted look on Sunday — the first day of the complete lockdown imposed by the State government.
Residents of Chennai woke up to rains, and arterial roads like Anna Salai, Poonamallee High Road and 100 Feet Road were devoid of traffic, unlike on other days, when hundreds of vehicles clog the roads.
Police meticulously conducted checks on motorists to ascertain if they were travelling for valid reasons. Even the busy T. Nagar and Purasawalkam areas did not see any major vehicle or pedestrian movement, as all grocery and vegetable shops remained closed.
An industrialist had suggested the ramping up of the sale of groceries through mobile units, as was being done for vegetables. As on Saturday, the Greater Chennai Corporation operated 4,949 push carts and 1,182 mini trucks, while the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) and the Cooperation Department operated as many as 501 vehicles, all for selling vegetables and fruits in the city.
One of the challenges in selling groceries through mobile units was that some people in the city, especially those belonging to the lower strata of society, expected to get them on credit, like they do in shops.
In Madurai, with shops and markets closed and restrictions imposed on movement of vehicles, major public spaces, including the Kalavasal junction, the Goripalayam junction, the East Veli Street and the PTR Bridge near Anna Nagar, were free of pedestrians and vehicles.
A senior Madurai Corporation official said that 55 mobile vegetable vending outlets were deployed across the city. Each vehicle sold 75 vegetable bags and 50 fruit bags. Around 11,500 people were served food at the 12 Amma Unavagams across the city.
In Coimbatore, access points to the main roads were barricaded in many areas. The wholesale vegetable market remained shut and vegetables were sold through government vehicles. Uzhavar Sandhais were open, but did not attract traders or customers. In some places, the police noted down the names and employment details of people working in essential sectors such as healthcare when they were going to work.
In Tiruppur, the district administration made arrangements for door delivery of vegetables. Ditto was the scene in Salem, which was into the second day of the total lockdown, as District Collector S.A. Raman had ordered a total lockdown on Saturday and Sunday and the Chief Minister had announced a four-day lockdown from Sunday to Wednesday.
