New Delhi: The marriage season is here and states are worried that a surge of coronavirus cases may be unstoppable amid the ‘Big Fat’ Indian wedding. Although Delhi, on Tuesday, said it is unlikely to impose a night curfew anymore, many several other states including Punjab, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra have implemented strict restrictions and lockdown.
Last month, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had hinted that his government was planning to impose restrictions at night. However, national capital’s caseload has, since, come down from 7,000 to 8,000 to less than 5,000. The positivity rate, too, witnessed a much-needed fall from 15.2 per cent, as recorded on November 8, to 6.8 per cent on December 1.
Speculations were raised after a Delhi High Court bench asked the Kejriwal-led AAP government what protocols and mechanisms it was following to keep a strict check on the coronavirus as the wedding season is nearing.
With the kind of surge Delhi witnessed in November, experts had predicted that the daily numbers of COVID-19 cases.
Meanwhile, the Delhi government did order other restrictions like imposing a fine of Rs 2,000 for not wearing face masks in public places and limiting the number of guests at wedding ceremonies to 50 persons.
At the same time, Maharashtra ordered all the schools in Mumbai to stay shut till December 31, while the Rajasthan government imposed Section 144 over the rising number of coronavirus cases in the state.
Which states have ordered night curfew?
Effective today, Punjab has ordered a night curfew in all towns and cities amid more than 1,000 wedding functions scheduled for December and January.
Similarly, the Gujarat government imposed a night curfew in Rajkot, Surat, and Vadodara, between 9 pm and 6 am until further notice, while Madhya Pradesh issued the order in five districts, including Indore and Bhopal from 10 pm at night. The Manipur government has also imposed a night curfew from 6 pm to 4 am till the end of this year.