PANAJI: Government offices, industries, agriculture and other allied sectors will resume in Goa on Monday as the state relaxes the lockdown to slowly restart economic activities. While thousands of people will return to work, police are set to strictly enforce social distancing measures.Also, starting Monday, every person who leaves the house has to compulsorily wear a mask, and violators will be fined. The relaxations only apply to those going to work. The lockdown continues to operate for all others, especially senior citizens.Chief minister Pramod Sawant, speaking to TOI, said that the state would implement the guidelines issued by the Union ministry of home affairs (MHA) in toto. The CM, however, stressed the need for social distancing and urged people to observe it strictly. “Even if the last Covid-19 case turns out negative, it doesn’t mean we won’t get (more) cases in Goa,” he said. “Every day, Goa’s neighbourhood is seeing a spike in Covid-19 cases, and we have to take full precautions.”Sawant said that chicken and fish will not be permitted to be sold in the state’s markets, but vendors would be allowed to offer home delivery. “Only grocery shops in the markets will be permitted to open,” he said. Meanwhile, to ensure that infections don’t enter the state along with essential commodities, the government is set to install a sanitiser tunnel at the border. Also in the pipeline is a rapid test, so that drivers of vehicles loaded with essential supplies are checked before they enter Goa.However, since the state’s usually-bustling markets will remain shut till May 3, fish-loving Goans are likely to continue to face hardships to get their daily quota of the dietary staple. Despite claims by the fisheries department that it has introduced mobile fish vehicles, fish continues to be sold at premium rates by non-traditional fly-by-night vendors at unauthorized places.State government offices will open on Monday with 33% of staff strength. Heads of departments have been asked to call employees to work on alternate days, and within three time-slots. Staffers not called in to office will work from home. This arrangement will remain in force till May 3.As private vehicles return to the roads, police will strictly implement social distancing measures. TOI reported on Sunday that no pillion riders will be permitted on two-wheelers, and in four-wheelers, no co-passenger will be allowed on the front seat. Only two persons can travel in a single car, the non-driver compulsorily occupying the rear seat.The state-run Kadamba service will start buses only to ferry employees to and from offices. While the service will run daily, individual buses will be deployed every alternate day, to facilitate sanitisation.There are 18 active industrial estates in Goa, while around 300 industrial units exist outside these areas. Most of these have been permitted to resume operations with staff restrictions. In total, around 3-3.5 lakh people are employed at these facilities. Employees of units that are permitted to function will get travel stickers issued by the government. The field manager of each industrial estate will issue a colour-coded sticker to each employee following an undertaking from the company head. “As of now, our requirement is 50,000 travel stickers,” said Goa State Industries Association (GSIA) president Damodar Kochkar.The GSIA finalised the procedure for resumption of industrial activity and travel norms for employees after talks with the Goa Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC), state executive committee (SEC), and units. As manufacturing activity picks up, interstate movement of cargo via road and rail is also expected to kickstart. Only freight trains will run — passenger rail movement remains suspended till May 3. However, South Western Railway (SWR) has introduced special trains with varying frequencies to cater to the demand for parcel services.Meanwhile, even as farming activities are permitted, the acute shortage of labour and manpower required for operating harvestor machines remains a cause of concern for farmers in the state. The workforce required for harvesting is usually sourced from across the state’s borders, and so are machine operators for combined harvesters. Co-operative societies have already started purchasing harvested paddy crop from farmers, and agriculture offices dealing in selling seeds, fertilizers and mechanized farming equipments are already open, with farmers queuing up to avail the benefits.And in the health sector, the directorate of health services (DHS) on Sunday ordered private medical practitioners and consultants to reopen their clinics with immediate effect and to render health services to people, particularly in rural areas. Even in the public health system, out-patient departments (OPDs) have started in all 30 rural medical dispensaries and 229 sub-health centres. A government official said only emergency and flu-related OPDs have started in primary health centres, community health centres and district hospitals.