Maharashtra government has agreed to allow restaurant owners in the state to provide dine-in service from the first week of October. According to reports, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray made the promise to a delegation of restaurant owners from Pune at a meeting held in Mumbai. The meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Sitaram Kunte and Excise Secretary Valsa Nair Singh. Apart from representatives of Pune restaurant owners association, those from Mumbai and Nagpur too participated in the meet. As reported by The Indian Express, the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said that the government has prepared an SOP for the restaurants to follow. After remaining completely shut for two and a half months, Maharashtra government had allowed the restaurants to open on June 1 but only for takeaway & home deliveries with a complete embargo on dine-in service. Although it’s been over six months into the new year 2020, about 75 per cent bar owners have not paid the annual fee and are waiting for the relief which now CM Thackeray has promised. The number of coronavirus cases in Maharashtra has reached 13,39,232 with 35,571 deaths being reported.
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