The Kerala government on Thursday announced a lockdown from 6 AM on May 8 to May 16 to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
NEW DELHI: The Kerala government on Thursday announced a lockdown from 6 AM on May 8 to May 16 to contain the spread of the second wave of the deadly COVID-19 virus.
The announcement was made by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, news agency ANI reported. The state government will soon issue a detailed guideline on what will be allowed and what will remain restricted during the lockdown period.
Kerala had reported the highest single-day spike of 41,953 new COVID-19 cases and 58 deaths on Wednesday. Addressing the media, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said there are 3,75,658 active COVID-19 cases in the state.
“A total of 23,106 people also recovered today. Total 13,62,363 patients recovered so far, while 5,565 deaths have been reported till now,” he said.
Vijayan said Kerala is going through a serious situation with COVID spreading rapidly in the state. “The test positivity rate is not coming down. The situation calls for imposing more restrictions in the state,” he said.
The Chief Minister asked the banks in the state to stop all recovery proceedings in view of the serious situation and informed that Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) and Kerala Water Authority (KWA) have been asked to stop collecting the pending bill arrears for two months.
“People in the state who need emergency medicines and are unable to go out can seek the help of Kerala Police to buy medicine by calling the police control room,” he said and directed the State Police media centre to spread awareness in social media about COVID-19 guidelines.
