Covid-19: Tripura extends night curfew to more areas

With the surge in coronavirus cases in Tripura, the state government on Monday decided to extend night curfew to all local and urban bodies and nagar panchayat areas as well as the number of hours under it, officials said.

Tripura chief secretary, Manoj Kumar on Monday passed the order which said that the night curfew will be in force indefinitely from Tuesday.

The government on Monday decided to clamp the night curfew in all civic body areas of the state from 6 pm to 5 am the next day. Earlier, night curfew was clamped in Agartala Municipal Corporation areas from 10 pm to 5 am

Emergency services like medical services and the media have been exempted from the purview of the night curfew, the order said.

Law Minister Ratan Lal Nath, who is also the cabinet spokesperson said though the coronavirus situation in Tripura was better than many other states in the country, the number of infected patients was increasing day by day.

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"We have observed that the cases are mostly found in the municipal council, nagar panchayats and in Agartala Municipal Corporation areas. It prompted us to extend the time of night curfew in all urban bodies, Nath told reporters.

He said government offices will function from 10 AM till 4 PM with 50 per cent attendance of employees but all gazetted officers will have to be present in the offices.

The government has also decided to conduct Covid tests in all government offices and shops in Agartala Municipal Corporation areas soon, he said.

Public gatherings related to social, political, academic, cultural, festival, sports, entertainment have been restricted in the state, officials said.

A maximum of 100 persons have been allowed to attend weddings or any social functions. A maximum of 20 persons are allowed to attend funerals, they said.

Cinema halls and multiplexes have been allowed 50 per cent capacity and use of face masks, sanitizers and maintaining physical distance is mandatory, the officials said.

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The state government has already postponed all examinations for recruitment in the government offices, offline classes in schools, colleges and universities, while all gymnasiums and recreation clubs have been closed indefinitely.

Violators of the order will be charged under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, and Section 188 of Indian Penal Code (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) including other applicable legal provisions, officials said.

Meanwhile, at least 134 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in Tripura on Monday, pushing the tally in the state to 35,723, a health department official said.

The toll in the killer disease has risen to 396 with two more patients succumbing to the infection, he said.

Tripura currently has 1408 active coronavirus cases, while 33725 people have recovered from the disease, the official added.