COVID: Night Curfew in Bengaluru, 7 More Cities in Karnataka

Essential services will be allowed, said the Karnataka government.

Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa.

(Image: PTI)

The Karnataka government has announced a night curfew in Bengaluru, Mysuru and five other districts of Karnataka for 10 days starting from April 10. The curfew will come into effect from 10 pm to 5 am every day from April 10 (Saturday) to April 20 (Tuesday). The night curfew will be imposed in Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mangaluru, Kalaburagi, Bidar, Tumkur and Udupi-Manipal.

The decision comes after a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Chief Ministers of all states with reference to Karnataka. The decision comes in the wake of a surge in COVID-19 cases in Bengaluru and six other districts.

Though there is a surge in the cases, the fatality rate remains low (0.05% on Wednesday), the state government said. The PM has advised to focus on micro-containment zone, ensure sufficient ambulance, oxygen supply and ventilators. He has also called for a vaccine drive from 11 to 14 April.

As part of its latest decision, the Karnataka government has announced a slew of restrictions. All essential services will be allowed. Gathering will be prohibited for fairs and festivals and other religious and social gatherings. Action will be initiated to impose penalties on those who do not wear masks and maintain distancing in public places.

Apart from this, the state government has announced other measures to increase the vaccine coverage and treatment for COVID-19.

• Vaccination drive from April 11 till April 14th
• About 6,000 Vaccination Centres are working daily.  Of these, 5,400 are in government facilities and 600 in private facilities.
• The number of tests has been doubled to about 1.20 lakh. More than 95% of the tests are being conducted using the RT-PCR method.
• The number of general beds, oxygenated beds and ICUs have been revamped. More than 42,000 general beds, 30,000 oxygenated beds, 3,000 ICUs and 2,900 beds with ventilators in general hospitals have been arranged.
• Oxygen generators from PM-CARES fund have been sought to decrease the load on oxygen manufacturing.

“So far, we have vaccinated more than 53 lakh people. We have vaccinated 22.31% of the target population above 45 years of age as compared to the national average of 13.94% as on April 5,” the state government said.

(This story was first published on The News Minute and has been republished here with permission.)