Mumbai, March 23: Mumbai petrol pumps will remain open for 12 hours till March 31 starting from 7 am to 7 pm. According to a Times of India report, this means that even in case of emergency, people in the city will not be able to get fuel, be it petrol or diesel. On account of the rising COVID-19 positive cases in the state, the Maharashtra government announced a complete lockdown barring the essential services.

The 12 hour functioning of petrol pumps will create more panic and will lead to longer lines. This will also be defying Uddhav Thackeray's directive who said that essential services would be available 24*7 during the lockdown period. The petrol pump owners have argued that there is a serious health hazard for people working at the petrol pumps. Coronavirus Cases in India Rise to 415, Seven Deaths Reported Due to COVID-19.

The Health Ministry informed on Monday that the total number of coronavirus positive cases in the city jumped to 89. On account of the lockdown, services of several things were impacted. As newspaper vendors refused to deliver, newspapers didn't publish their Monday edition for Mumbai.

The number of deaths due to coronavirus rose to eight in India after a 57-year-old man who tested positive for COVID-19 died in Kolkata on Monday. Reportedly, the deceased had been admitted to a private hospital and later tested positive for coronavirus. He suffered a cardiac arrest and died on Monday.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 23, 2020 04:29 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).