BENGALURU: With Karnataka reporting a single-day spike of around 8,000 Covid positive cases on Friday, the government announced it will sternly implement 10pm-5am curfew, which will start from Saturday, in Bengaluru and seven other cities across the state.
The state saw a whopping 7,955 Covid cases and 46 deaths, while the number of people admitted to ICUs touched 378. Bengaluru reported 5,576 cases - the highest since the pandemic hit the state. Prior to this, the highest number of Covid positive cases seen in a single day was 5,121 on October 8, 2020.
"It is high time the pandemic is taken seriously by all. We need to break the chain of transmission," said health minister K Sudhakar, exhorting people to follow basic health protocols such as wearing masks, sanitizing hands at frequent intervals and avoiding crowded places.
Hotels, eateries can’t run beyond 10pm: Top cop
The situation is alarming in Bengaluru as the positivity rate (the number of people turning positive per 100 tests) touched 7.22% on Friday. The city reported 29 deaths and, 21 of these were senior citizens.
Bengaluru City police commissioner Kamal Pant told TOI: “Hotels, eateries and other commercial establishments interacting with the public cannot run beyond 10pm. Firms, offices, companies operating night shifts can run the show but without appearing in the public. For instance, a software engineer on night shift should make sure he or she reaches the office before 10pm and leaves after 5am the next day. The main objective is to avoid unnecessary movement of citizens.”
Asked whether his department will issue pass or coupons as was done during the 2020 lockdown, Pant replied in the negative.
According to the order, the curfew will be in force from 10pm and 5am from Saturday to the morning of April 21.
The government has prohibited all types of commercial activities, except medical and emergency services, in Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mangaluru, Udupi, Manipal, Bidar, Kalaburagi and Tumakuru. The government order passed by chief secretary P Ravi Kumar restrains the public from moving around during night without valid reasons.
“We hope that the restrictions imposed during night will slow the spread of Covid,” a health official added. Those caught violating will booked under the Disaster Management Act, the Karnataka Epidemic Diseases Act 2020 and the Indian Penal Code, and their vehicles can be seized.