Nagaland to impose partial lockdown for a fortnight from April 30

Nagaland cabinet Tuesday decided to impose partial lockdown with stricter rules in the state from April 30 to May 14 in view of the surge in Covid-19 cases across the country, a government official said.

The cabinet also decided to impose a fine of Rs 200 on those not wearing a mask in public places, he said.

The Neiphiu Rio government in the state decided to provide free vaccines to everyone above 18 years of age, he said.

"Fresh guidelines for the lockdown will be issued on April 29," the advisor for IT, science and technology, Mmhonlumo Kikon said.

During the partial lockdown schools, colleges, educational institutions and hostels will remain closed in the state. Online education will be permitted and encouraged, he said.

All cinema halls, swimming pools, gymnasiums, entertainment parks, auditoriums, sports complexes, stadiums and similar places will remain closed throughout the period, Kikon said.

Public gatherings will be permitted outside the containment zones, but they will not be more than 30 per cent of the total capacity of the venue or a maximum of hundred people, whichever is lower.

CORONAVIRUS SPECIAL COVERAGE ONLY ON DH

Places of worship will be permitted to open outside the containment zones, with 30 per cent of the maximum capacity of the venues, he said.

Such gatherings should strictly adhere to Covid-19 appropriate behaviour like wearing masks, social distancing, and regular washing of hands, he said.

Nagaland on Tuesday reported 207 new Covid-19 cases, the highest single-day spike in the year so far, increasing the tally to 13,445, a health official said.

"207 +ve cases of Covid-19 reported today. Dimapur - 177, Kohima - 13, Tuensang - 9, Longleng - Mokokchung - 3 each, Mon - Peren - 1 each. And, 16 +ve patients have recovered. Kohima - 8, Dimapur - 7, Wokha - 1, Health Minister S Pangnyu Phom tweeted.

The caseload includes 12,151 recovered persons, while the number of active patients has shot up to 874, he said.

The recovery rate in Nagaland has come down to 90.37 per cent from Monday's 91.67 per cent, the state nodal officer for Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme, Nyanthung Kikon said in the daily Covid-19 bulletin.

The toll in the state due to the disease is 98, including 10 with comorbidities, he said adding a total of 278 coronavirus patients have migrated to other states.

A total of 1,44,236 suspected Covid-19 samples have been tested in Nagaland so far. It includes 77,751 through RT-PCR, 37,934 through TrueNat and 28,541 through Rapid Antigen Test methods, Kikon said.

Nagaland has administered a total of 1,86,350 doses of the Covishield vaccine to 1,47,656 people as of Sunday, the state immunization officer Ritu Thurr said.

Out of the total Covid jabs 47,195 were given to frontline workers, 14,149 to healthcare professionals, 86,312 to people above 45 years and senior citizens, he said.

A total of 38,694 people, comprising 23,381 frontline workers, 9,560 healthcare workers, and 5,753 people above 45 years old and senior citizens, have received the second shots of the Covid-19 vaccine, Thurr said.