COVID-19: Andhra Pradesh extends lockdown curfew till June 30 with added relaxations

On Friday, June 18, the Andhra Pradesh government has extended the COVID lockdown curfew in the state till June 30 with additional relaxations. All the districts can function with eased restrictions from 6 am to 6 pm but shops must close by 5 pm. The new guidelines will be effective from June 20. 

East Godavari is the only exceptional district to not operate as per new lockdown norms due to high COVID active cases. The relaxation in this district is from 6 am to 2 pm.

The lockdown in AP continues

Earlier, the Andhra Pradesh government had decided to extend the curfew in the state till June 20. Relaxation timing was from 6 is to 2 pm with effect from June 10 onwards. Government offices would function from 8 am to 2 pm.

The decision was taken in a review conducted by the Chief Minister with officials of various departments in the wake of the expiry of the curfew already imposed on the 10. 

Vaccines to mothers with children under age 5

On June 7, State Medical and Health Principal Secretary Anil Kumar Singhal announced that all women with children under the age of five years will be vaccinated as a preventative measure. 

Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy informed during a COVID review conference that if children become ill with Coronavirus, their mothers should also stay in hospitals. He added, "So the state government has decided to inoculate mothers with kids under the age of 5 years. There are almost 20 lakh such mothers, they will be inoculated along with those aged 45 plus years".

Pandemic crisis in the state

On June 13, relatives of a deceased COVID-19 patient mounted a protest at Padmavati Hospital, Andhra Pradesh, alleging that medical malpractice was to blame for their loved one's death.  Alla Kali Krishna Srinivas, the state's health minister, inquired about the situation and directed hospital officials to check into it. 

As the state is thriving to manage the pandemic situation, former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu had written to the Governor saying that the state has been grappling with the COVID pandemic and the harassment faced by 'frontline warriors, opposition leaders, the general public, and Dalits'. He had also accused the state government of turning a blind eye towards the difficulties. 

COVID cases in Andhra Pradesh

To date, Andhra Pradesh has reported a total of 18.3 lakh active COVID cases with 17.4 lakh recoveries and 12,109 deaths. The state has administered a total of 1,24,69,238 COVID vaccines across 227 vaccination sites. 

East Godavari is the highest COVID reporting district in the state with a total of 2,51,938 active cases, 23,5,836 recoveries and 1,069 deaths. While, Vizianagaram is the least COVID reporting district in the state with 78,721 active cases, 75,866 recoveries and 640 deaths. 

 (Image credit: PTI/REPRESENTATIVEIMAGE)