KARACHI: There was some semblance of the ‘old normal’ on Tuesday morning as shopping malls in the city reopened after a couple of months’ lockdown break.

A visit to a known mall in Clifton proved to be an encouraging experience. (It’s early days, mind you.) The SOPs were followed to a great extent, and one had to praise the mall’s staff for making sure that the public did not flout the regulations put in place by the government.

To begin with, temperatures were checked at the main entrance. There were big signs on the floor urging the people to keep a distance of at least three feet from one another. Children under the age of 12 were not allowed to enter the premises. This writer saw a family that had brought in kids falling into the ‘not-allowed’ bracket sent back by a guard at the entrance.

Children in the ‘not-allowed’ bracket were sent back by a guard at the entrance to a shopping mall

Once one stepped into the building, save for eateries, it was like the old times — well-lit stores were doing business. Though there was not a huge amount of people in the mall at the time, they had begun to trickle in.

The famous bookstore in the building did not permit anyone to touch or even look at books without sanitising their hands and wearing gloves (needless to say that masks are mandatory and no one can roam around without putting them on).

Talking to Dawn, a member of the security staff, Fahad, said they were trying their best to make people stick to the SOPs. Also, there were different directions given to shops. A fixed number of customers were allowed at a time. The number varied from store to store.

Walking into the supermarket at the mall was another nice little episode. Customers were required to get in line with a three-foot distance, sanitise their hands and wear gloves. Once done with that, they had to go through a ‘disinfection zone’ (where they’re sprayed with a disinfectant). Only after that they were deemed fit to shop.

Most of the customers had a spring in their step. They looked eager to move around the mall. But there were also some who were trying to come to terms with the new way of mall life. One of them remarked, ‘achha nahin lag raha’ (I don’t like it).

Yes, all of this sounds a bit restrictive, but to remain healthy and away from the virus scare, it’s not that bad an exercise. Is it?

Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2020