India reported 114,460 new Covid-19 cases, 189,232 discharges, and 2,677 deaths in the last 24 hours, informed the Union Health Ministry on Sunday. This is the lowest number of cases reported in the last two months. On 5 April, 96,982 cases were reported. The following day, the country saw 115,736 new cases.
With the rate of infection in the second wave of Covid-19 outbreak substantially slowing down across the country, several states have begun the process of unlocking gradually. However, there is not much relief in south India as the second wave is still raging there. In states where the number of infections is not decreasing, the restrictions are still in place.
Delhi on Sunday reported 381 new corona cases in the last 24 hours—a nearly three-month low. The positivity rate, the number of positive cases identified per 100, has dropped to 0.5 per cent—the lowest since 9 March when the national capital›s positivity rate was at 0.48%. Keeping this decline in mind, the Arvind Kejriwal government said that the second phase of unlocking will begin on Monday.
On Saturday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal during a digital press conference said that the lockdown will last another week after 7 June, but markets will reopen and Delhi Metro will resume service. Kejriwal declared that government and private offices would open on Monday.
Similarly, Maharashtra, which on Sunday witnessed 12,557 new coronavirus cases—lowest daily number of cases in the state in nearly three months—the state government said that the unlock process will begin on Monday. The Mahavikas Aghadi government›s five-level plan is based on weekly positive rates and oxygen bed usage in districts; however, no concessions would be offered in Mumbai until after 15 June.
On Sunday, the Yogi Adityanath government announced the lifting of Covid-imposed curfew from all districts barring Meerut, Saharanpur and Gorakhpur as active cases in these three districts are above 600, informed Additional Chief Secretary-Information Navneet Sehgal. Till Saturday, Meerut had 1,248 active cases while Saharanpur and Gorakhpur had 1,171 and 783 cases respectively. The unlock process in UP began a week ago when the government lifted the curfew for 20 districts.
On Saturday, Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath said that a two-day weekly curfew should be implemented in all 75 districts. To make the curfew effective, he said, the police and local administrations should be in action from 6 pm onwards.
The number of daily recorded instances of corona has decreased significantly in Gujarat, prompting the state’s Vijay Rupani government to loosen certain lockdown restrictions. On Friday, the Rupani government declared that from 7 June, private and government offices in the state will be able to operate with 100% workforce.
Lockdown in place to break the chain of Covid-19 transmission in Haryana has been extended by another week, till 14 June 14. The restrictions were first imposed on 3 May. “Now, after duly considering the fact that although the Covid positivity rate and the number of new Covid positive cases have declined, so as to continue the preventive and precautionary measures to contain the Covid pandemic, the government has decided to extend the ‘Mahamari Alert-Surakshit Haryana’ from June 7 (5 am onwards) to June 14 (till 5 am) in the state of Haryana,” said an order issued by the Haryana Chief Secretary.
Since 1 June, the restrictions of the corona curfew in Madhya Pradesh have been gradually eased. Despite the progressive unlocking, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan stressed that residents and officials must take all necessary precautions to prevent the virus from spreading.
Coming to the southern states, the lockdown in Tamil Nadu has been extended till 14 June. However, some relief has been given during this time.
The lockdown has been extended once again in Karnataka. Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa said, “Lockdown has been extended in the state till 14 June to break the chain of Covid-19.”
In Kerala too, the state government had last week extended the lockdown till 9 June.
