UP eases Covid curfew,markets to remain shut only on Sundays

In Uttar Pradesh,shops and business establishments will remain closed only on Sundays from August 14 as cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in the state have been on the decline. Now the Covid-19 curfew will be in place only on Sundays from August 14 and that activities will be allowed between 6am to 10pm. The state government issued guidelines in July ordering markets, shops and business establishments to function from 6am to 10pm from Monday to Friday and to shut on Saturdays and Sundays as cases of Covid-19 were on the rise.

Additional chief secretary Awanish Kumar Awasthi said in an order, people will mandatorily need to wear masks, observe social distancing and use sanitsier. Sunday lockdown or corona curfew will continue. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had directed officials to consider a partial relaxation in the two-day weekly closure of shops and business establishments. He also sked the home department to present detailed guidelines in this regard. According to reports there is not a single Covid patient in Aligarh, Amethi, Chitrakoot, Etah, Firozabad, Gonda, Hathras, Kasganj, Pilibhit, Pratapgarh, Shamli and Sonbhadra districts. The recovery rate now stands at 98.6%. Not even a single fresh case of the infection was reported in 59 of the state's 75 districts on Tuesday, whereas in the remaining 16 districts, the number of fresh cases was less than 10.

A health bulletin on Wednesday showed that 27 new Covid-19 cases and one fatality were reported in Uttar Pradesh and its tally rose to 17,088,36 and the death toll climbed to 22,776. As many as 16,85,555 people have recovered from Covid-10 in the state, the bulletin said. The number of active Covid-19 cases stands at 555, it added.