The Andhra Pradesh government decided to extend the curfew till May 31 as the coronavirus graph continued to be on a steep upward spiral in the state. The state government took the decision on Monday, following a review meeting that Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy held with ministers and senior officials.
At Monday's review meet, the chief minister opined that while the partial curfew is in effect for ten days, tangible results can be expected only if it is imposed for four weeks.
The government had imposed a 14-day partial curfew from May 5, aiming to control the pandemic spread in the state. While the current curfew period was due to end on May 18, spiraling Covid cases have forced the government to rethink the matter.
For the past several days, on average, the state has been reporting around 20,000 covid cases every day, with an all-time daily high of 24,171 cases on Sunday, clearly indicating that the curfew had had no impact.
Under the partial curfew, shops and other commercial establishments such as restaurants are allowed to function between 6 am and 12 noon, during which section 144 is imposed.
Curfew will be in place from 12 noon to 6 am, during which only emergency services will be allowed to function.
Service establishments hospitals, covid testing labs, and pharmacies have been exempted from the partial curfew.
Agricultural activities are allowed to continue in adhered to the guidelines issued by the agriculture department. The manufacturing sector has also been granted exemption by the government.
A release from the Chief Minister's Office said Jagan Mohan Reddy asked the health officials to take steps to bring down the Covid-19 cases, particularly in rural areas.
The Chief Minister also asked the officials to take care of children who lose their parents to Covid-19.
"Prepare an action plan on extending required financial assistance to such children. Deposit a fixed amount in their name so that they can utilise the interest for their regular needs," Jagan said.
Andhra Pradesh reported a record high of 109 Covid-19 deaths in the 24 hours ending 9 am on Monday even as 18,561 fresh cases were also registered. In terms of overall positive cases, AP is ranked sixth in the country but is at the fourth place in the number of active cases, government data said. In mortality, AP is ranked 18th.
(With agency inputs)