Kolkata: After reviewing the coronavirus situation in the state, the West Bengal government on Wednesday extended the lockdown till July 30, 2021. Issuing fresh guidelines, the state government allowed the Kolkata Metro to operate 5 days a week with 50% seating capacity. However, the metro services will be suspended on Saturday and Sunday.

The state government said that not more than 50 people at weddings and 20 at funerals are allowed at this time pf pandemic. Moreover, all shops and markets will remain open as per usual operational hours. The decision on lockdown was taken during a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Full list of guidelines: 

On Tuesday, senior official at the West Bengal government said that the state may not completely lift the coronavirus-related restrictions that have been imposed in the state till July 15.

“Though the pandemic situation in the state has improved a lot, withdrawing the restrictions completely might still be risky. Nearby states like Tripura and Odisha and even Bangladesh have reported a surge in cases. “Therefore, we need to be extra cautious… The CM will decide on it,” the official told PTI.

He said that warnings by experts regarding a possible third wave will have to be considered as well before coming to a decision on lifting the restrictions.

The West Bengal government had extended the COVID-19 curtailments till July 15, announcing certain relaxations.

Corona cases: West Bengal on Tuesday reported 863 fresh COVID-19 cases, raising the tally to 15,13,877, while the death toll mounted to 17,944 with 17 more fatalities, the health department said in a bulletin.

The state now has 14,191 active cases and 14,81,742 people have recovered from the disease, it said. The positivity rate has declined to 1.84 per cent, and the discharge rate improved to 97.88 per cent.

Altogether, 1,48,61,930 samples have been tested for COVID-19 in West Bengal, including 46,909 since Monday, the bulletin said. Meanwhile, 2,22,074 people were inoculated in the state on Tuesday, a health department official said.