Karnataka government rules out lockdown as COVID-19 cases surge, tightens restrictions
The meeting was chaired by the Chief Minister and Health Minister K Sudhakar, and both denied suggestions of a lockdown or a night curfew in the state.
FollowIn light of the surge in Covid-19 cases in Bengaluru, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Monday called for a meeting to discuss the matter with minister and other government officials.
The government banned all parties and celebrations in apartments and protests, rallies across the state.
The meeting was chaired by the Chief Minister and Health Minister K Sudhakar, and both denied suggestions of a lockdown or a night curfew in the state.
The government decided to place a blanket ban on protests and dharnas in the state for the next 15 days after a spike in the Covid-19 cases over the last three to four days.
But on the flipside, the state decided to persist with offline exams for class I to IX and board examinations despite the alarming increase in the positive cases.
It said, "The number of Covid-19 cases in apartments is increasing, so no parties or celebrations allowed from today. For 15 days from today no protests, rallies will be allowed in the state."
However, schools will not be closed. It said: We are not going to close schools and colleges. We have taken suggestions about closing schools, it will be reviewed after exams that will finish in 15 days.
According to the CM, post meeting, while Bengaluru has recorded the majority of case with over 2000 of the 3000 + cases in the state, the other four districts have recorded 100 each on a daily basis.
“Based on this rising concern, we have decided to ban all protests and Satyagrahas in the state by various groups and organisations for the next 15 days,” said the CM.
However, Yediyurappa did not add any caveat on banning political rallies with three byelections scheduled for April 17.
The meeting comes a day after Karnataka reported over 3,000 Covid-19 cases in a single day on Sunday. The state reported 3,082 Covid-19 cases on the day, with 2,004 cases recorded in Bengaluru alone. The figures showed a steady climb in Covid-19 cases in Bengaluru and Karnataka over the course of the month.
