Roads empty, towns deserted across districts

The public transport, including buses and other means of transport like auto-rickshaws, vans and cars remained off the roads as people strictly adhered to the curfew advised by the government.

The curfew was effective from 7 am, but people started coming out of their houses much earlier to buy essential commodities such as milk, rice, dhal, oil and water containers on the weekend day.

Even some meat stalls remained open in the early morning hours to cater to the needs of the consumers. Such stalls were crowded as people wanted to return home soon. Moreover, several grocery shops and departmental stores were crowded in recent days and similar trend lasted till Saturday night after the curfew was declared by the government.

Consumers waited in large queues at many shops to buy commodities of their choice. Many vital installations such as Madurai railway junction and Meenakshi temple witnessed a low turnout, sources said. Besides, tourism spots in Kodaikanal, Dindigul district and pilgrimage centres in Palani, Rameswaram, Thoothukudi and Tiruchendur lacked its lustre with only a few people around. Moreover, there was not much activity on beaches in parts of Thoothukudi, Tiruchendur, Rameswaram and Kanniyakumari, the sources said.

However, a newly-wed couple in Thoothukudi had a different dayout on Sunday as the groom tied the knot amidst low turnout of relatives. Initially, the couple, along with their relatives, approached the Sivan temple, located in the heart of the city, where the wedding was scheduled. But, much to their disappointment, the couple was denied entry citing COVID-19 precautions.

The couple with masks on along with the relatives then moved to Mariamman temple at Muniyasamypuram in Thoothukudi and tied the nuptial knot in the midst of a few relatives, the sources said.

Western dists extend support

Meanwhile, the people in Western districts extended their full support to the self-imposed curfew as roads remained empty and shops downed shutters on Sunday.

There was hardly any movement of people on the roads as they remained indoors from morning. In Coimbatore, a team of volunteers led by District Collector K Rajamani distributed food packs to people in front of Coimbatore railway junction due to closure of all eateries and hotels.

It was a rare sight to find children playing cricket and games on arterial roads, which used to witness heavy movement of traffic on regular days. More than 1,000 police, who were deployed across Salem advised people roaming out to stay indoors. In Krishnagiri, a few meat shops remained opened in the morning, but they too were closed falling in line with commercial establishments. A group of people who came in vehicles from Karnataka were turned away at the border check-post in Hosur.

In Erode hundreds of lorries were halted at Naripallam, while all other vehicles too stayed off the roads. Essential services like hospitals, petrol bunks and pharmacies alone remained open.

The police in Western region said that the self imposed curfew passed off peacefully without any untoward incidents.