Amid a spike in coronavirus cases, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat on Tuesday shortened the timings for night curfew imposed in several areas citing upcoming festival celebrations in the state. The night curfew will now be imposed from 10:30 pm to 5 am.
A statement from the CM's office said that Rawat has shortened the night curfew, which will now be imposed from 10:30 pm to 5 am now. "This is applicable for the areas where night curfew is already imposed," the statement from CMO said.
Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand government also allowed marriage gatherings with up to 200 people outside containment zones in the state. In a statement, Uttarakhand Chief Secretary Om Prakash said that weddings outside containment zones will have a gathering of 200 people, who will have to abide by COVID-19 appropriate behavior.
The state has imposed a night curfew in Dehradun from 10 pm to 5 am to combat COVID-19. The state cabinet decided to shut schools for classes 1 to 12 in Dehradun, Haldwani, and Haridwar till April 30.
Uttarakhand on Monday reported 1,334 new COVID-19 cases, taking the cumulative count in the state to 1,10,146. The active cases in the state now stand at 7,846.
Uttarakhand Chief Secretary Om Prakash on Saturday held a meeting with the officials of the state health department and district magistrates (DM) to discuss the COVID-19 situation at the Secretariat. He said since COVID-19 cases are increasing all over the country, the state will have to be proactive in preventing the spread of the virus and instructed all the District Magistrates to be thoroughly prepared to cope up with the situation.
Meanwhile, the CM has requested all the devotees coming for the third 'Shahi Snan' at Haridwar Kumbh Mela to follow COVID-19 guidelines of wearing masks, maintaining social distancing and sanitising hands.
Of the 18,169 devotees who were tested between Sunday 11.30 pm and Monday 5 pm, as many as 102 people were found positive for Covid-19.
