From Sunday midnight, a triple lockdown has been imposed in four districts of Kerala that have the highest number of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases in the state. It will last until May 23.
As part of the administration’s effort to stem the massive spread of coronavirus, the boundaries of Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Thrissur, and Malappuram districts were sealed, while the current lockdown in the other ten districts of the state will continue.
Kerala reported 29,704 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday. The death toll now stands at 6,428 after 89 new fatalities. The percentage of people who passed the test was 25.61 percent.
The new triple lockdown guidelines are as follows:
- Beginning Monday, stores selling food, groceries, fruits and vegetables, dairy products, meat and fish, animal fodder, poultry and cattle feed, and bakeries will be open on alternate days. By 2 p.m., all stores, including those that provide home delivery, will be closed.
- On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., banks, insurance, and financial services will operate with minimal staff. Cooperative Banks will only be open from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays.
- Milk and newspaper distribution must be completed before 8 a.m., according to the guidelines. Restaurants and hotels will be allowed to operate from 7 a.m. to 7.30 p.m. with home delivery services only, while fair price shops (Ration/PDS/Maveli/Supplyco shops) and milk booths will be allowed to operate on all days until 5 p.m. In any restaurant or hotel, dine-in and take-away/parcels are not permitted.
- Medical stores, gas stations, ATMs, stores selling life-saving equipment, hospitals, and other clinical facilities must be open at all times. Authorities have advised the public to purchase provisions and vegetables from stores close to their homes rather than travelling long distances to do so. The public will be prevented from travelling long distances to buy basic necessities.
- Drones and Geo Fencing technology will be used, and strict restrictions will be imposed in these districts, according to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. All district borders will be sealed, as well as all containment zones in the district, according to police in Ernakulam districts.
- All homes with positive and primary contact family members will be sealed, and no one from the containment zones will be allowed to leave, even if they are exempted from working. Only essential service personnel will be permitted to leave for work. Even if the work is in the exempted category, no outsiders will be allowed into containment zones.
