Covid-19 cases surge in northeast: Total curfew in Manipur

The Manipur government declared total curfew across the state from Sunday, July 18 in view of a rising number of Covid-19 cases with the Delta variant.

The state on Thursday reported 1,093 new cases of Covid-19 while 14 deaths were reported in the last 24-hours.

Officials said the number was very high for a small state like Manipur with population of just 28 lakh.

Also Read | Govt asks northeastern states to step up Covid measures

"In view of rising number of Delta variant of Covid-19 cases, there is a need to take stringent measures to break the chain of transmission. Therefore, the state government has decided to declare total curfew from July 18 across the state," a notice issued by Principal Secretary, Health Department, V. Vumlunmang said.

Only essential services related to Covid-19 vaccination, Covid testing, medical services, water supply, power, telecom and internet services, air travel and agricultural activities would be allowed during the curfew, the notice said.

Manipur at present has 8,558 active cases of Covid-19 and the recovery rate stood at 87.86 per cent on Thursday.