COVID-19: Kerala to continue night curfew, Sunday lockdown; essential services allowed

As Kerala continues to report a hike in COVID-19 cases, the state government has decided to continue its night curfews and Sunday lockdown for avoiding the spread of the virus. During this while, only essential services will be allowed in the state. 

Kerala to continue Sunday lockdown

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on September 4, Saturday held a press conference and made several announcements regarding the COVID-19 situation in the state. The press conference was held after a review meeting on the coronavirus situation in Kerala. 

Addressing the media, CM Vijayan said that it will continue with Sunday lockdowns and night curfews as Kerala reports 29,682 fresh coronavirus cases on Saturday followed by 142 deaths. The active cases stand at 2,50,065 and the testing positivity rate was recorded at 17.54%. Talking about the sudden hike in cases, he said that the hike is not as high as it was estimated after the Onam celebrations. However, the state is facing a shortage of vaccines doses and is scheduled to receive 9,97,570 dozes on Sunday. 

CM Vijayan also spoke about the strategies to be adopted for handling the situation. He said that the state government is holding discussions with health experts at the national as well as international level for handling the COVID-19 situation in Kerala. Also, it will form neighbourhood communities with employees, volunteers, and several associations for keeping a watch over the COVID-19 rules being followed in the state. Police services will be deployed for ensuring proper quarantining.

Kerala's serious COVID-19 situation

Kerala being at the top of the list with the maximum cases from the state is still on the radar of concern. The Kerala government though seems to ignore the risk and is ruling out the possibility of a lockdown. Stating the same, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan said that a complete lockdown will affect the economic condition of the state and it will go into a huge crisis. He further stated that around six districts in a state have already exhausted their crucial vaccine stock and only 1.4 lakh doses remain in the state's reserve stock.

(With agency inputs)
(Image Credits: PIXABAY/ANI)