Karnataka govt imposes weekend curfew, extends night curfew to curb COVID; guidelines out

The Karnataka government anonunced a slew of measures, including the extension of the night curfew and imposing a weekend curfew, in order to curb the spread of the COVID pandemic. The decision came after PM Modi's address to the nation on Tuesday and as Karnataka saw a huge surge in the number of COVID cases being reported over the past week. Making the announcement, the Karnataka Government Chief secretary informed that a state-wide night curfew, that is already in place in districts across the state, would be extended from 9 pm to 6 am. The govt announced that a weekend curfew would also remain in place from Friday 9 pm onwards till  6 am on Monday. The new set of guidelines will come into effect as of 21 April and will remain in place until 4 May. 

What will remain closed?

Alongside schools, colleges, and other educational institutions, cinema halls, shopping malls, gymnasiums, yoga centers, spas, sports complexes, swimming pools, amusement parks, theatres, bars, and auditoriums, assembly halls will remain closed. Places of religious worship will remain closed to the public; however, all personnel engaged in the service of the place of worship shall continue to perform their rituals and duties without involving any visitors. Restaurants and eateries are permitted to only allow takeaways or home deliveries. A maximum of 50 people are allowed to attend marriages while the number of participants for a funeral is capped at 20, as per the new guidelines issued by the Karnataka government on Tuesday. 

While all private offices were advised by the government to function with minimal strength, the govt offices will function at 50% capacity while Courts and Offices related to judicial work will operate as per High Court's guidelines. All social, political,  sports, entertainment,  academic, cultural, religious gatherings other large congregations are prohibited. Stadiums and playgrounds are allowed for organizing sports events and practicing purposes without spectators, as per the government-issued guidelines.  

What is allowed?    

The movement of people through public transport has also been permitted while the number of people traveling in buses, maxi cabs, tempo travellers and metro shall be 50% of the seating capacity and other vehicles shall be as per the seating capacity stipulated by the RTO. The govt has also asked individuals to avoid unnecessary travel by private vehicles. Similarly, no restriction has been placed on intra-state or inter-state movement of people or goods but noted that it was mandatory for persons arriving from other states to follow the protocol issued by the Health department. Movement of all types of cargo and goods will also remain unrestricted, the govt order said. All agriculture and allied activities are permitted outside containment zones. Petrol pumps will remain open and services will remain unaffected.   

Shops involved in the sale of essential goods are permitted to remain open along with Cold storage and warehousing services, banks, insurance offices, and ATM, E-Commerce deliveries are allowed, as per the guidelines. It also allowed the operation of wholesale vegetable vendors and directed them to operate from an open space or playground and ordered that the process od transfer should be completed by April 23. Standalone liquor shops and bars will remain open for takeaway only.  

Karnataka reports biggest single-day spike of 21,794 COVID cases

Karnataka has reported its biggest single-day spike of 21,794 COVID-19 cases and 149 related fatalities, taking the total caseload 11.98 lakh and the toll to 13,646, the Health Department said on Tuesday. The state had previously reported its biggest single-day spike of 19,067 cases on Sunday. Out of the 21,794 fresh cases reported on Tuesday, 13,782 were from Bengaluru Urban alone. The day also saw 4,571 patients getting discharged after recovery.

Cumulatively 11,98,644 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state, which includes 13,646 deaths and 10,25,821 discharges, the Health department said in a bulletin. Out of 1,59,158 active cases, 1,58,407 patients are stable and in isolation at designated hospitals, while 751 are in Intensive Care Units. Among 149 deaths reported on Tuesday, 92 were from Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural (13), Bidar and Kalaburagi (7), Ballari (5), followed by others. Among the districts where the new cases were reported, Bengaluru Urban accounted for 13,782, Tumakuru 1,055, Kalaburagi 818, Mysuru 699, Bengaluru Rural 513, Dakshina Kannada 482, followed by others.