With the Covid pandemic again spreading in Maharashtra, the local administration in several districts of the Vidarbha region have swung into action on Thursday and have imposed Covid restrictions such as restricting movement at night and preventing more than five people from coming together.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and his Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar held a closed-door meeting to discuss the emerging situation. More restrictions in the affected districts can be expected soon. Talking to media persons here, Pawar said the Chief Minister had chaired the meeting for taking decisions that were needed for tackling the situation.
On Thursday evening a media statement issued by the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme of the State Public Health Department said that 5,427 new Covid positive cases were found (yesterday the figure was 4,787) with a total number of active Covid cases at 40,858 in the state.
In two districts of Maharashtra, Amravati, and Yavatmal, restrictions were put in place. While a 10-day lockdown was announced in Yavatmal, a weekend lockdown was imposed in Amravati.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) also released a set of new Covid-related guidelines for Mumbai. Also, citizens flouting rules for home isolation, weddings, and public gatherings will be prosecuted, an order from Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal stated.
The administration in eastern Maharashtra's Yavatmal district has ordered a 10-day lockdown from yesterday night amid a surge in coronavirus cases.
Schools for students of classes 5-9, colleges, and coaching classes in the Yavatmal district will remain shut till 28 February.
Fifty people will be allowed at weddings, religious places will remain open but coronavirus protocols will be strictly implemented.
Restaurants and hotels in the Yavatmal district will remain open between 8 am to 9.30 pm, while markets and shops will be allowed to operate till 8 pm.
A weekend lockdown was announced in the Amravati district, from 8 pm on Saturday to 7 am on Monday.
Naval added that on weekdays, all establishments in the district, including hotels and restaurants will be open till 8 pm (from 10 pm earlier).
During this lockdown period, markets and other establishments will remain closed, but essential services will be unaffected.
For those who violate safety guidelines, the BMC will register offences against them.
Citizens flouting rules for home isolation, weddings and public gatherings will be prosecuted, the civic body has said.
The BMC has said that a seven-day institutional quarantine is mandatory for travellers arriving at Mumbai airport from Brazil, where a new strain of Covid-19 has been discovered.