COVID-19: Partial lockdown in West Bengal; weekend lockdown in 9 Haryana districts

As COVID-19 cases continue to surge in the country, both West Bengal and Haryana governments announced fresh restrictions in their respective states on Friday. The Haryana government has imposed a weekend lockdown in nine districts of the state in order to curb the spread of coronavirus. West Bengal government announced a partial lockdown in the state as well.

In West Bengal, public places such as shopping complexes, cinema halls, beauty parlours, spas and sports facilities will remain closed till further notice. Markets in the state will only open for five hours a day. This will be from 7 am to 10 am and then from 3 pm to 5 pm. Pharmacies and grocery shops are exempted from the partial lockdown.

Restaurants, bars, swimming pools and gyms will also remain closed, as per the West Bengal government's order. However, home deliveries of items will be permitted during the partial lockdown. The state government has banned all social, cultural, academic and entertainment gatherings.

The nine districts in Haryana where the lockdown has been imposed are - Gurgaon, Faridabad, Panchkula, Sonipat, Rohtak, Karnal, Hisar, Sirsa and Fatehabad. The weekend lockdown will begin at 10 pm on Friday and will last till 5 am on Monday, per the government's order. The nine districts account for the most COVID-19 cases in Haryana.

"Residents must stay indoors during the lockdown period. No person shall leave their home or move on foot, in a vehicle, or stand, or roam around in any public place during the lockdown period," the order noted.

Authorities handling law and order, emergencies, municipal services and government workers on COVID-19 duties have been exempted from the weekend lockdown. Those who are working on manufacturing essential commodities are also exempted, so are candidates appearing in exams. The movement of essential and non-essential goods is also allowed during the weekend lockdown.

Meanwhile, India reported 3,86,452 fresh cases of COVID-19 on Thursday. As per Union Health Ministry's latest bulletin,  India recorded the highest 3,498 deaths in the past 24 hours. Haryana reported 13,847 fresh COVID-19 cases and 97 fatalities while West Bangal registered 17,403 new COVID-19 cases and 89 coronavirus related deaths.

(Edited by Mohammad Haaris Beg)

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