 "IN PICS: A year on, a look at life under lockdown, and the year 2020")
Over 6 million commuters found themselves without their go-to mode of public transport and metro services across Delhi-NCR was suspended last year.
Most residents from Delhi would avoid opting for this road on a regular work day due to its heavy traffic. Amid restricted movement, this rare view was captured on March 24, 2020, when the national capital began with its lockdown.
The day a nationwide Janta Curfew was imposed, even the bustling Dadar, one of Mumbai’s major interchange railway stations, went quiet. The pictures above depict the striking difference between the footfall before and after the Covid outbreak.
With citizens being advised to stay indoors, major tourist attractions took a major blow on their shins. With no visitors, their earnings dried up.
As the economy came to a standstill during the lockdown, thousands of migrant workers were forced to return to their native places. With no money in hand, many undertook the long journey on foot, while some travelled by trains and buses.
Long queues were seen in front of liquor stores when the Delhi government allowed them to reopen during the fourth phase of the lockdown.
When Covid pushed people indoors, offices and educational institutions moved swiftly to the new normal of ‘work from home’.
Towards the end of the long pandemic year, 2020, when people began stepping out, thermal checking at every entry point, frequent use of sanitisers, social distancing and a mandate to wear masks became the new order of the day.
Travelling during the extraordinary Covid times required extraordinary care, too. This was the time when passengers were layered with protection gears and made to follow social-distancing and quarantine norms even after travel.