Odisha govt unveils lockdown 5.0 guidelines; night curfew between 7 pm to 7 am

On Monday, June 1, the Odisha government issued new guidelines for the fifth phase of the lockdown in the state till June 30. Despite the Ministry of Home Affairs mandating a reduction in the night curfew time, the movement of people shall continue to be restricted between 7 pm and 7 am except for essential services. The penalties for spitting in public and not wearing a mask have been beefed up whereby people shall be fined Rs.500 for the first and second violations and Rs.1000 for subsequent violations. There will be a total shutdown in 11 districts- Ganjam, Puri, Nayagarh, Khurda, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Balasore, and Bolangi on Saturdays and Sundays. 

While hotels can function with 30% occupancy, shopping malls, cinema halls, gyms, swimming pools will not open in the state. People shall not be allowed to enter places of worship until June 30.

Moreover, outdoor activities would not be permitted for persons with co-morbidities, persons above 65 years old, pregnant women, and children below 10 years old. All the educational institutions in the state shall remain shut. Currently, there are 1948 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Odisha out of which 1126 patients have been discharged while 7 deaths have been reported. So far, 4,26,504 migrants have returned to the state. 

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Phased reopening plan

On May 30, the MHA announced the lockdown would be extended in containment zones nationwide till June 30. Only essential activities shall be permitted in containment zones which will be demarcated by the district authorities. States may identify buffer zones outside the containment zones, where new cases are more likely to occur. The MHA issued guidelines for the phased reopening of prohibited activities outside the containment zones.

In phase 1, places of worship, shopping malls, restaurants, hotels, and other hospitality services will be allowed to open from June 8 in accordance with the SOP released by the Ministry of Health. The second phase entails that a decision on the reopening of educational institutions will be taken in July based on the feedback from the consultation process involving all stakeholders. Meanwhile, the MHA will declare the dates for the restarting of international air travel of passengers, Metro rail services, cinema halls, gyms, swimming pools, entertainment parks, bars, halls, and all types of gatherings according to the assessment of the situation.

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