Lockdown in Tamil Nadu: Panic buying grips Chennai, four other cities

CHENNAI: Panic buying gripped Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Salem and Tirupur corporation areas on Saturday as total lockdown will be in force in these places from Sunday for a few days. Markets and provision stores saw hordes of people, throwing physical distancing to a complete toss.

Around 11.30am, chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami announced that groceries and vegetable shops would be allowed to function till 3pm today in five corporations — Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Salem and Tirupur. This is also applicable to shops in suburbs of Chennai, falling in Chengalpet, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts. The CM requested people to maintain social distancing norms and cooperate with the government

However, the damage had been done by then as vegetables had been sold out in several markets by 10am due