Bengaluru, Jan 4 (IANS): The Karnataka government has declared restrictions and announced new guidelines till January 19 in the wake of unprecedented surge of Covid-19 cases in the state on Tuesday.
The night curfew has been extended till January 19 and weekend curfew is also being imposed as preventive measure to check the third wave of Covid-19 pandemic.
Speaking to reporters after marathon meeting held to discuss the prevailing situation in the state held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, Minister for Health K. Sudhakar has stated that classes from 1 to 9 standards have been suspended.
Pubs, bars, restaurants, theatres will operate with 50 per cent of their capacity during week days. At any given point of time, the devotees number is restricted to 50 in all religious places and prayer halls, he stated.
The number of guests for marriages is limited at 100 if the function is held in choultries, interior location and 200 for outdoor locations, he said.
International passengers if test positive at the airports will not have an option for home isolation. They will be directly send to government designated hospitals and hotels.
Those who returned from Goa state, would be tracked and tested again as most of Goa returnees are testing positive for Covid, Minister Sudhakar explained.
The RT-PCR negative report had been made compulsory for those travelling from Goa, Maharashtra and Kerala states. There will be intensive surveillance at the borders, he explained.
The government offices below the Under Secretary level operate with 50 per cent capacity and the services of the staff would be utilised by Health department. Above the Under Secretary rank officers would attend the offices fully, he said.
The state has seen a jump from 0.16 per cent to 3.12 per cent in terms of infections. "The infection is doubling in every 2-3 days. Earlier, in first and second waves it took about 8-15 days. We are seeing vertical growth of Covid cases this time," he said.
Since Bengaluru is the epi-centre of the infections, separate strategies are formulated by the government to deal with the situation in Bengaluru and rest of the state.
P. Ravikumar, Chief Secretary and Chairman State Executive Committee stated that Karnataka is witnessing alarming rate of increase in the number of patients which is attributed mainly due to Omicron variant. The number of patients getting doubled in less than 3 days, he added.
In Bengaluru Urban district, all schools and colleges except medical, para Medical will remain closed from January 6 except class 10, 11 and 12, he said.
Religious places are open only for darshan, and no seva is allowed.
Sports complexes and stadia are allowed to function with 50 per cent capacity.
All rallies, charnas, protests are prohibited. Any violations, legal action will be initiated under Disaster Management Act and IPC sections, he explained.
The weekend curfew will start from Friday 8 p.m. to Monday 5 a.m. Essential and emergency activities are allowed during weekend and night curfew.
All industries including IT industry are exempted from the restriction of curfew.
List of guidelines:
1. Night Curfew will continue to be imposed from 10 pm to 5 am in the entire State as per the existing guidelines.
2. All offices will function 5 days a week from Monday to Friday during this period.
3. The Government Secretariat will run with official below the rank of Under Secretary at 50% of the working strength.
4. There shall be weekend curfew from Friday 10 pm to Monday 5 am in the State as per the guidelines attached.
5. The Public transport including BMRCL will operate as per the directions of the Chief Executive of the organization to cater to the needs of people for emergent purposes during the weekend curfew.
6. In Bengaluru Urban district, all schools and colleges except, Medical and Para Medical will remain closed with effect from 06-01-2022 except class 10th, 11th and 12th.
7. Pubs/clubs/restaurants/bars/hotels/eating places in hotel etc, will function with 50% of the seating capacity strictly adhering to COVID appropriate behaviour and entry to such places will be restricted to fully vaccinated persons.
8. Cinema halls/multiplexes/theatres/rangamandiras/auditorium and similar places to operate with 50% of its seating capacity strictly adhering to COVID appropriate behaviour and entry to such places will be restricted to fully vaccinated persons.
9. Marriage Functions are permitted to be conducted involving not more than 200 people in open spaces and 100 people in closed places strictly adhering to COVID 19 appropriate behaviour and prevailing guidelines issued by State Government.
10.Religious places are allowed to open only for Darshan. No seva, etc, is allowed. Entry of people will be restricted to 50 persons at any given time who are fully vaccinated.
11.Malls, shopping complexes, all stand alone shops and establishment shall operate as usual during week days.
12.Swimming pools and gyms shall operate at 50% capacity but entry will be restricted to fully vaccinated persons.
13.Sports complexes and Stadia are allowed to function with 50% capacity.
14. All rallies, dharnas, protests are prohibited.
15.There shall be intensive surveillance at the border of Kerala and Maharashtra as per the prevailing circular/guidelines issued by Department of Health and family Welfare, Govt. of Karnataka. The same guidelines are extended to State of Goa. The checks are on all modes of transports that is air, train and road.
Guidelines for weekend curfew
Movement of individuals shall remain strictly prohibited between Friday 8 pm to Monday 5 am, except for essential and emergency activities as mentioned below:
1. All State and Central Government offices and their Autonomous Bodies,Corporations, etc, dealing with emergency, essential services and COVID 19 containment and management duties shall be fully functional and officers/personnel of the same shall be allowed unrestricted movement.
2. All public parks are closed.
3. All the industries including IT industries are exempted from the restriction of curfew and their employees are allowed movement to and fro movement on producing valid ID card issued by their respective organization/institution.
4. Patients and their attendants/persons requiring emergency need,eligible people intending to take vaccination shall be allowed movement with minimal proof.
5. Shops dealing with food, groceries, fruits and vegetables, meat and fish, dairy and milk booths, and animal fodder shall be allowed to function. Street vendors allowed to function. Public Distribution System shops are allowed to function. Home delivery of all items shall be encouraged 24x7 to minimize movement of individuals outside their homes. Operations shall be subject to adhering to National Directives for COVID 19 management.
6. Restaurant and eateries shall be allowed only for take away and home delivery.
7. Movement of trains and air travel are permitted. Movement of Public Transport, private vehicles and taxis to and from airports, railway stations and bus terminals/stops/stands is allowed for facilitating movement of passengers by air, rail and road. The movement will be allowed only on displaying valid travel documents/tickets and strictly adhering to COVID appropriate behavior.
8. Marriage Functions are permitted to be conducted involving not more than 200 people in open spaces and 100 people in closed places strictly adhering to COVID 19 appropriate behaviour and prevailing guidelines issued by State Government.