Male, May 13 (IANS): Maldivian President Ibrahim Solih has ordered the military to implement health and safety measures in order to curb the ongoing fourth wave of the Covid pandemic, local media reported on Thursday.

In a televised address on Wednesday, Solih urged citizens to cooperate with health regulations to ease the burden on the country's healthcare system and prevent the situation from growing out of control, reports Xinhua news agency.

Solih said that the Maldives was one of the countries worst affected by the pandemic in terms of economic fallout.

He warned that more stringent restrictions would be imposed to curb the worsening spread of the virus, which would hurt the economy.

A curfew is currently effective in the Greater Male area between 4 a.m. and 4 p.m., during which all movement is banned except with a special police permit.

Prayer congregations in capital Male, as well as dine-in services at all cafes and restaurants, have been suspended.

Data from the Health Protection Agency showed that 1,572 new cases were detected in the Maldives on Wednesday.

The island nation has so far reported 40,092 coronavirus cases and 87 deaths.