After two days of weekendcurfew, shops and other business establishments reopened on Monday across Jammu and Kashmir and normal traffic plied on roads.  The easing of the lockdown has come in the backdrop of a decline in the number of COVID-19 positive cases.

However, classwork remained suspended as educational institutes including schools, colleges, universities and private coaching centres have been directed to remain closed till June 15 in Kashmir.

All clubs, gyms and parks would also remain closed till further orders in Kashmir where weekend and night curfew would continue.

In the last week of May, the Jammu and Kashmir administration had extended the COVID curfew, which was supposed to end on May 23, by another week till May 31 in all 20 districts.

That was the fourth successive extension of COVID curfew since April 29 in Kashmir.

According to the unlock guidelines issued by the authorities, shops will remain open on alternate days in Kashmir.

The public transport was allowed to ply at 50 per cent seat capacity in Orange category districts and remained shut, except three wheelers, in Red category districts.

All the roads and market places, including Lal Chowk, reopened on Monday.

However, shops were allowed to open on one side while the business establishments on the other side of the road remained closed in compliance of the recent government order in Lal Chowk and other markers in Srinagar, where public transport, including cabs, hit the roads though very less in number after over a month.

Barring 96 containment zones, shops and businesses established reopened while traffic was playing in most of the roads in Srinagar.

Reports, quoted by IBNS,  said there were no restrictions in Sopore, Baramulla, Bandipora and Kupwara in the north and Shopian, Anantnag, Pulwama and Kulgam in south Kashmir.(SAM)