Coronavirus: Punjab announces daily night curfew, weekend lockdown
The Punjab government on Monday tightened restrictions to limit the spread of COVID-19 in the state. The state extended the current night curfew by two more hours. A weekend lockdown will also be imposed henceforth. The development comes a day after the state reported a record single-day spike of over 7,000 new cases. Here are more details.
Daily curfew from 6 pm-5 am
According to the new restrictions, a daily night curfew will continue from 6 pm to 5 am until further notice. A weekend lockdown will be in force from Friday 6 pm to Monday 5 am. "Urge you all to stay at home & step out only if absolutely necessary. Seek your full cooperation," Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh said in a tweet.
CM seeks increased quota for oxygen
In another tweet, the CM urged Home Minister Amit Shah and Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan to enhance the state's daily quota for liquid medical oxygen. He tweeted, "Situation of Oxygen supply in Punjab is extremely critical due to rising #Covid19." Punjab is getting only 85 tonnes of the allotted 105 tonnes as the rest is being diverted to the PGIMER, Chandigarh, Singh said.
How bad is the outbreak in Punjab?
On Sunday, Punjab had reported a record single-day spike of 7,014 new cases, marking a daily positivity rate of 12%. The cumulative number of cases has climbed to 3,39,090, out of which, 48,154 cases involve active infections. 76 more deaths took the fatality count to 8,432. Meanwhile, Chandigarh reported two deaths and 749 fresh cases, taking the infection tally to 38,692.
