Pune: The city police have started erecting barricades and blocking roads for vehicular movement 30 hours before the actual lockdown begins. Many citizens expressed their anger over this 'over-enthusiastic' attitude of the police force.
The Pune Municipal Corporation and District Administration officials have announced to reimpose lockdown in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad from Monday (July 13) night for the next 10 days. This lockdown will be strict for the first five days with only milk, medical shops and hospitals allowed to function in the district. Officials have claimed that these stricter measures will help break the chain of coronavirus infection spread and thereby reduce the number of COVID-19 cases in the city. The lockdown was announced on the instructions of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.
Officials claim that the lockdown announcement was done three days before to give sufficient time to citizens to make necessary arrangements for food and grocery and other essential and non essential items in their homes. As a result, a large number of people came out on Saturday and Sunday to buy and stock various items. However, since Sunday morning police started barricading and restricting movement of vehicles and citizens on roads as a part of their preparations for the implementation of lockdown.
Angered by this unannounced and over-enthusiastic approach of Pune police, many citizens have questioned this move which has caused inconvenience to the public at large. "If the lockdown is being implemented from Tuesday morning, police force had an entire day and night on Monday to start their preparations. We have stepped out of home to buy essential items for the next 10 days. Blocking the roads is causing much inconvenience to us," a citizen said.
During the first, second and third lockdown too Pune police had caused inconvenience to common citizens by taking arbitrary decisions without informing anyone in advance. As a result, clashes between local police personnel on bandobast duty and citizens were reported at several locations outside medical and grocery shops in April and May month.
