On Monday, it was repeat of what happened after unlock post the first wave of the pandemic in Hubballi-Dharwad. With least regard for physical distancing, people swarmed the market places and consequently, traffic snarls were reported from many areas.
On day one of Unlock 3.0, people came out in large numbers, took out their vehicles to the central business district, to places of religious worship and prayers and it appeared as if they have no fear of the pandemic any more.
It was like free for all. Many did not even bother to use face masks and were seen roaming around in the market without any hesitation. The dug-up roads in various localities of the twin cities only added to the problems of the traffic police personnel. Especially in the central business district in Hubballi, traffic jams were witnessed at different points of time as people showed least regard even for traffic regulations.
Most of the temples witnessed large number of people visiting for darshan. Although the management committees had made arrangements to ensure adherence to COVID-19 guidelines, they could not control the behaviour of the people.
With restrictions being relaxed, people also thronged vaccine centres. The main vaccination centre in Hubballi, the Karnataka Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS), witnessed serpentine queues for vaccination. As it was the first day of unlock, the authorities too seemed a bit lenient.
