Lockdown 2.0 exemption list from April 20: All you need to know

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Wednesday issued a revised list of guidelines for phase two of lockdown allowing certain sectors to function from April 20. In the revised lockdown guidelines, agriculture, health services and industries operating in rural areas have been exempted from the lockdown as they fall under essential services. 

According to the Home Ministry's revised lockdown guidelines, select industrial activities are allowed to resume their operations, with adequate safeguards and mandatory standard operating protocols (SOPs); and the digital economy. The MHA guidelines also prescribe National Directives for COVID-19 management; SOPs for social distancing at offices, workplaces, factories and establishments; and, penalties for offences regarding violation of lockdown measures under relevant sections of Disaster Management Act 2005 and IPC, 1860.

The lockdown guidelines have been released a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the extension of nation-wide lockdown.

List of activities exempted during Lockdown 2.0 from April 20

• All Medical facilities that include Aayush, health infrastructure related works.
• Agriculture and Horticulture related activities including Mandis run by Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC) or notified by State/Union government.
• Postal services along with post offices across the country.
• Public utility works such as water, sanitation and waste management by Municipal/local bodies in states and union territories.
• Trucks with two drivers and a helper. Empty trucks to pick up goods or to return after delivering goods.
• Movement of cargos by airways and railways.
• Infrastructure projects such as the construction of roads, buildings, irrigation projects including MSME in rural areas.
• IT companies, but with only 50 per cent staff and under the strict provisions of social distancing norms.
• Financial sector including RBI, bank branches and ATMs, SEBI.
• E-commerce companies’ operations.
• Offices of state governments, union territories and their autonomous/subordinates.
• IRDAI and insurance companies.
• Social sector including observation homes, after-care homes and Anganwadis.
• MGNREGA related work.
• Industries related to the production of essential goods, industries in rural areas.
• Movement of cargos and essential items across the country.
• Public utilities such as oil and gas sector.
• Movement of private vehicles in case of any medical emergency. In the case of Two-wheelers, only the driver will be allowed.
• Offices of departments under the government of India and its subordinates.
• Truck repair shops and dhabas on highways with prescribed social distancing norms.

Where the lockdown exemption list won't apply

The consolidated revised guidelines would not apply in containment zones, as demarcated by States/ UTs/ District administrations. If any new area is included in the category of a containment zone, the activities allowed in that area till the time of its categorization as a containment zone, would be suspended, except for those activities that are specifically permitted under the guidelines of Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Government of India.