News Brief: Fresh Restrictions Imposed In These States After Surge In COVID-19 Cases

Amid the rising number of COVID-19 cases, restrictions on movements have been imposed in several parts of the country.

As per the union health ministry data, 83.91 per cent of the new cases are from Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, and Kerala.

Reportedly, Maharashtra alone accounts for 61.8 per cent of the daily new cases with 17,864 cases.

In the state capital Mumbai, Mayor Kishori Pednekar said that it was necessary to impose night curfew. “We are also considering shifting the crowded markets to new sites. All Mumbaikars need to work together to prevent the imposition of a lockdown,” she was quoted as saying.

Nagpur is under a week-long lockdown till 25 March while Pune administration has imposed a night curfew from 11 PM to 6 AM. Additionally, the district administration has directed schools and colleges to remain shut till 31 March.

In Wardha, the district administration has imposed a curfew from 8 PM to 8 AM on Monday. In Nasik, night curfew has been imposed between 7 PM and 7 AM. In Nanded, night curfew has been imposed from 7 PM to 7 AM until 21 March. In Panvel also, night curfew has been imposed from 11 PM to 5 AM until 22 March.

In Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad, restrictions under Section 144 of CrPC have been imposed till 10 May, in view of rising COVID-19 cases, and the upcoming festivals. Gautam Buddh Nagar Police has also imposed restrictions under Section 144 of CrPC till 30 April.

The police has appealed to people to wear masks, maintain social distancing and follow all guidelines. Additional DCP, Law and Order said that action will be taken against the offenders.

In Uttarakhand, Dehradun district magistrate ordered complete lockdown in parts of Mussoorie including the Galway Cottage area, St. George's School, and Barlow Ganj area. As per the order, all shops and offices will be closed till further announcements.

In Madhya Pradesh, night curfew has been imposed in Indore and Bhopal from 10 PM to 6 AM. Shops are ordered to be closed after 10 PM in Jabalpur, Gwalior, Ujjain, Ratlam, Chhindwara, Burhanpur, Betul, and Khargone.

The state has also banned public programmes on Holi festival but people can celebrate individually.

In Karnataka, the Udupi district administration has declared the campus of Manipal Institute of Technology (MIT) as a containment zone following a recent spike in the number of Covid-19 cases on. The development comes after 59 cases were reported from the campus.

Karnataka CM Yediyurappa on Wednesday ruled out imposing lockdown or curfew in any part of the state including Bengaluru.

The state of Tamil Nadu is already under lockdown till 31 March along with the "strict adherence to the prescribed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). All international air travel of passengers, except for purposes as permitted by MHA remain prohibited.

Meanwhile, in Punjab, night curfew has been put in place from evening 9 PM to morning 5 AM in the districts of Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Patiala, Mohali, Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala, and Ropar. All these districts are reporting more than 100 cases daily, Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh informed.

Punjab Department of School Education has declared "preparatory leaves" for all classes in both private and government schools. However, teachers will continue to remain present in the schools.

In Gujarat, the curfew from 10 PM to 6 AM has been extended to Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, and Rajkot.

A total cases now 50 with 1 death have been reported from Patel Faliya in Vadodara. The area is sealed after the maximum number of cases reported from there. Temple, shops etc. have been shut down, the Sarpanch Ritesh Patel, Khanpur, Vadodara told ANI.

The health ministry today informed that the total number of cases of the UK, South Africa and Brazil variants of the COVID-19 virus in India currently is 400.