Maharashtra issues stricter curbs as COVID-19 cases surge; gatherings capped at 50 persons

After the COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra continued to rise exponentially, the state government on Thursday imposed further curbs to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus. While not more than 100 persons in enclosed spaces and 250 persons in open spaces were allowed to attend a marriage function or a social, cultural, political and religious gathering at any point in time, the maximum number of attendees has now been restricted to 50 persons. Moreover, the new order stipulates that only 20 persons can attend the last rites. 

Apart from this, the competent authority has been empowered to impose Section 144 of the CrPC in places that attract large crowds such as tourist spots, beaches, open grounds, etc. Earlier on Thursday, Maharashtra recorded 5368 novel coronavirus cases, a spike of 1468 cases from a day before. This propelled the state's COVID-19 tally to 66,70,754. At present, there are 18,217 active cases in the state. With 1193 COVID-19 patients discharged in the day, the number of recovered soared to 65,07,330. 

Meanwhile, 198 new cases of the Omicron variant were reported in the state on December 30 out of which 30 had returned from abroad. Overall, a total of 450 persons have been infected with Omicron in Maharashtra so far whereas 125 of them have already tested negative. The COVID-19 positivity rate, recovery rate and fatality rate in Maharashtra stand at 9.68 percent, 97.55 percent and 2.12 percent respectively.

Here are the other COVID-19 restrictions in Maharashtra:

• All persons connected with the organization of any event, service providers, participants, guests, customers shall be fully vaccinated

• Only fully vaccinated persons can visit a shop, establishment, mall, gathering, etc.

• Only fully vaccinated persons can use public transport

• Universal Pass created by the state government or a CoWIN certificate with a valid photo ID will be considered proof for vaccination status

• All domestic passengers coming to the state must be fully vaccinated or carry an RT-PCR test report valid for 72 hours

• Sports events and other competitions can be held with the number of spectators not exceeding 25% of the seating capacity of the venue

• Restaurants, gyms, theatres, spas can continue to operate at 50% of the capacity

• Groups of more than 5 persons cannot gather in any public place from 9 pm to 6 am

• The District Disaster Management Authority can impose stricter restrictions due to specific local situations. However, it must give adequate public notice before applying such restrictions