BackPunjab extends lockdown till 10 June with minor relaxations. Details here
The decision to extend the curbs was taken at a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Amarinder Singh here, according to a government statement
PremiumPunjab government today extended the lockdown in the state till 10 June. However, an official notification from the Chief Minister's Office said that in view of the decline in positive as well as active cases the restriction on the number of passengers in personal vehicles is removed. Earlier the Punjab government has said that not more than two persons can travel in a car which has been removed today said a government notification.
Earlier the Punjab government decided to continue with all existing COVID restrictions in the state till May 31, amid a high positivity and fatality rate due to the disease.
The Punjab government also allowed the resumption of elective surgeries and OPD in hospitals.
The CM directed the resumption of elective surgeries in both government and private hospitals and the restoration of outpatient department (OPD) operations in view of the improvement in the coronavirus situation, the statement said.
The state government had stopped elective surgeries on April 12 to ensure adequate availability of beds and medicine oxygen for serious infection cases.
The CM has now allowed these to be resumed, subject to the condition that there shall, for the present, be no reduction in beds for Level-3 coronavirus patients in hospitals.
The CM also said while the limit on the number of passengers in personal vehicles is being removed, the limit on commercial passenger vehicles and taxis will continue to be in place at present.
The state government had imposed extensive curbs, in addition to measures like a weekend lockdown and a night curfew to check the spread of the infection.
Anybody arriving in Punjab must have a negative Covid-19 report, which is not more than 72-hour old or produces a vaccination certificate, at least of one dose, over two weeks old, the order stated.
Punjab on Thursday reported 178 more fatalities due to COVID-19, taking the toll to 14,004, while 3,914 fresh infections took the total number of cases to 5,56,089, according to a medical bulletin.
The number of active cases dropped from 50,549 on Wednesday to 48,231, as per the bulletin.
The state's daily recoveries of 5,995 were in excess of the daily infections of 3,914.
As the lockdown-like curbs have once again been extended in Punjab, here's what's allowed and what's not during the period:
- All educational institutions will remain closed but the teaching and non-teaching staff of government schools to attend duty. Also, all recruitment exams will be postponed.
- It also stated that pillion riding on scooters and motorcycles will not be allowed except for those belonging to the same family and living in the same house.
- All shops selling non-essential items will remain shut. Those dealing in medicines and essential items like milk, bread, vegetables, fruits, dairy and poultry products like eggs, meat, mobile repair will be allowed.
According to the statement, given the comfortable oxygen situation currently, the CM directed that it now be allowed to be used for essential non-medical purposes, with a three-day buffer stock of it, however, to be maintained at all times. He said oxygen concentrator banks have been created in every district for post-covid care patients who have a doctor's prescription. The control room had ensured that there was no shortage of oxygen in any hospital, he said, adding that the demand in the state had come down from 304 metric tonnes to 236 MT in the past 10 days.
The CM directed the Health and Medical Education Departments to continue strengthening the Covid care infrastructure to deal with a possible third wave of the pandemic. He asked them to invest in augmenting paediatric care and to seek 500 ventilators for it from the Centre. It was told at the meeting that all 809 ventilators received earlier under the PM Cares Fund have been distributed and 136 of them were not working.
The CM also ordered the creation of more technical and specialist posts to meet the demand of the possible third wave. All mid-level IAS/PCS transfers in all departments should be put on hold till the Covid crisis continues, directed the CM.
The CM also warned that profiteering and fleecing of patients by private hospitals amid such a crisis will not be allowed at any cost.
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