West Bengal on Sunday re-imposed certain Covid restrictions — closing of educational institutions and capping attendance at private and government offices at 50 per cent — in the light of a worrying increase in daily cases, including those of the Omicron variant.
The authorities ordered a 10:00pm-5:00am curfew, following in the footsteps of Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. Only essential and emergency services can operate in this time, reports NDTV.
Schools, colleges and universities in West Bengal will be closed from Monday, as will swimming pools, gyms, spas and beauty salons, and wellness centres.
"Government and private offices can work at 50 per cent capacity, with all administrative meetings to be conducted virtually," the state Chief Secretary HK Dwivedi said.
Kolkata Metro services will also be capped at 50 per cent capacity and local trains can run only till 7:00pm. Long-distance trains, however, will be allowed to run normally.
Cinema halls, restaurants and bars can function at 50 per cent capacity and up to 10:00pm. Shopping malls can stay open from 10:00am to 5:00pm, but crowds must be at 50 per cent.
Attendance at gatherings for marriages and other social, religious and cultural occasions will be limited to 50 persons, while those for funerals or burials will be limited to 20.
On Saturday, West Bengal logged 4,512 new Covid cases, taking its active caseload to 13,300 — the third-highest in the country after Maharashtra and Kerala.
The state has also reported 20 cases of the more infectious Omicron variant, the rapid spread of which has triggered alarm bells across the world and in India.
Data shared by the Union Health Ministry showed densely populated cities like Kolkata, Delhi and Mumbai were experiencing the sharpest increase in daily new cases.
