Haryana extends lockdown till July 12 with more relaxations - What's allowed, what's not

To curb the spread of the coronavirus, the Haryana government on Sunday extended the lockdown in the state till July 12, with further relaxations including conducting examinations.

According to the order issued by Chief Secretary Vijai Vardhan, the "Mahamari Alert-Surakshit Haryana" has been extended for another week, that is from July 5 (5 am onwards) to July 12 (till 5 am) in the state of Haryana.

Relaxations by Haryana government-

The Institute of Chartered Accountants is allowed to hold Chartered Accountant (CA) examinations from July 5-20, the order said.

While conducting the exams, guidelines for examination centres, examination functionaries and candidates for July 2021 CA examination in wake of the ongoing Covid pandemic, released by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India along with SOPs issued by the Centre from time to time regarding preventive measures to be followed to contain Covid will have to be followed strictly, the order stated.

The orders further said that the Common Entrance Examination (CEE) to be held at Hisar by the Army Recruiting Office will also be allowed, subject to strict observance of social distancing norms, sanitisation and Covid appropriate behavioural norms.

Earlier relaxations to continue

According to earlier relaxations, all shops are allowed to open from 9 am to 8 pm, malls are allowed to open from 10 am to 8 pm, restaurants and bars, including those in hotels and malls, are allowed to open from 10 am to 10 pm with 50 per cent seating capacity.

In addition to the relaxations announced last week, the government has now allowed the sports complexes, stadia to open for sports activities. However, spectators will be barred from visiting.

Swimming pools and spas will continue to remain closed.

The Haryana government had imposed the lockdown in the state on May 3 in view of the prevailing Covid situation. It has now been extended for the ninth time.