Punjab govt imposes lockdown in Mohali over Ram Navami; shuts bars, malls, gyms amid surge

As COVID-19 surges across Punjab, CM Capt Amarinder Singh on Monday, announced fresh curbs to tackle the spread, including a complete lockdown in Mohali on Ram Navami (Wednesday). Singh has also ordered closure of all bars, cinema halls, Gyms, spas, coaching centres, sports complexes and extending night curfew from 8 PM to 5 AM. Punjab has 34,190 active cases, 2,57,946 recoveries and 7902 new deaths.

Punjab's new COVID curbs

• Mohali, along with the rest of the tri-city, will remain under complete lockdown on Wednesday, on the occasion of Ram Navami, to avoid gatherings amid the surging Covid cases in the region.
• Extension of night curfew timings (8 pm to 5 am)
• Closure of all bars, cinema halls, Gyms, spas, coaching centres, sports complexes
• Restaurants and hotels to be open only for takeaway and home delivery from Monday to Saturday.
• Rates for RT-PCR and Rapid Antigen Testing (RAT) by private labs have been reduced to Rs 450 and Rs 300 respectively
• Gatherings of more than 20 persons, including for weddings/cremations, have also been banned across the state,
• number of people in buses/taxis and autos be restricted to 50% of the capacity. 
• Postponement of the recruitment exams for Patwaris
• Medical Education department to hold online examination for 1st, 2nd & 3rd year MBBS / BDS /BAMS and 1st year Nursing students.

Moreover, with only three days of vaccine stocks left, Punjab CM has urged the Centre to send immediate supplies of vaccines and also give quick approval for two new Oxygen plants in the state. Health Secretary Hussan Lal said three plants had been operationalised since the last surge, and two plants at Medical Colleges Amritsar and Patiala were awaiting the Centre’s approval. While there was shortage currently, supplies were being diverted from one district to another to meet the requirements.

India's oxygen shortage

On Saturday,  Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired an emergency meeting to review the COVID situation and the immunization drive across the country which is currently underway. Top officials across various ministries attended the meeting to discuss the shortage of Remdesivir, oxygen, beds, ventilators, and vaccine doses across states. To meet rising demand,  Centre has sanctioned installation of 162 pressure swing adsorption (PSA) plants in public health facilities in all states to help hospitals become self-sufficient in their requirement for medical oxygen, while also reducing the burden on the national grid for its supply of medical oxygen.  Thirty-three of the 162 PSA plants have been installed -- five in Madhya Pradesh, four in Himachal Pradesh, three each in Chandigarh, Gujarat and Uttarakhand; two each in Bihar, Karnataka and Telangana; and one each in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Haryana, Kerala, Maharashtra, Puducherry, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, it said.