Omicron scare: Section 144 CrPC invoked in Lucknow till January 5

In the wake of the Omicron scare, the Uttar Pradesh Police on Tuesday imposed Section 144 in Lucknow district till January 5, 2022. This decision has been taken keeping in mind the upcoming Christmas and New Year celebrations as well as the lurking threat of the new COVID-19 variant and farmers' protest, the Lucknow Police informed. With the new restrictions in place, a gathering or procession with more than five people will not be permitted in the region. 

"No one without a proper police permission will either take out a procession of five-person or more than that, nor anyone will become a part of it," an order passed by Piyush Mordia, Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order), Police Commissionerate Lucknow said. "No one will do anything which will create communal tension inside the jurisdiction of Lucknow Commissionarate," it added.

Apart from the COVID-induced restrictions, the UP Police has also released guidelines to tackle the law and order situation in the district. The police force will be deployed at the examination centres of UPCS, PSC, or any other government-related examination to stop anti-social elements and people involved in cheating (scandals), the order read. This has been announced in view of the upcoming examinations. 

UP Govt increases vigilance at borders amid Omicron scare

The new COVID-19 variant Omicron has prompted the Uttar Pradesh government to tighten its measures in order to curb the spread of the new variant. With 23 cases of Omicron variant reported in India, the UP administration has issued guidelines regarding the new variant, designated as ‘variant of concern’ by the World Health Organization (WHO).

According to the new guidelines issued, people travelling to Uttar Pradesh need to undergo RT-PCR tests for COVID-19. According to the new guidelines, all the people who test positive for Coronavirus need to undergo genome tests. The new rules have been introduced for the people coming to the state as cases of the new variant have been reported in other parts of the country. UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has also directed officials to ramp up the vaccination programme. So far, no case of Omicron has been detected in UP. 

(With Agency Inputs)