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Patna, Bhagalpur to lockdown, other Bihar districts may follow

Bihar’s case count has gone up from 10,205 to 13,525 in a week and 100 people have died of Covid-19 so far in the state.

Bihar lockdown, Bhagalpur lockdown, Bhagalpur corona cases, bihar covid deaths, coronavirus cases, covid-19 bihar, indian express Bhagalpur, which has seen Covid-19 cases go up from 500 on July 1 to 693 on July 8, has announced a lockdown from July 9 to July 16. (File)

Following a sharp spike in Covid-19 cases, the district administrations of Patna and Bhagalpur in Bihar have announced lockdowns.

Patna, where Covid-19 cases climbed from 747 on July 1 to 1351 on July 8, will be under lockdown from July 10 to July 16. Over 50 cases in Patna have links to the Chief Minister’s residence where his niece, several staffers and others who came in contact with them have tested positive.

Bhagalpur, which has seen Covid-19 cases go up from 500 on July 1 to 693 on July 8, has announced a lockdown from July 9 to July 16.

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Bihar’s case count has gone up from 10,205 to 13,525 in a week and 100 people have died of Covid-19 so far in the state.

Sources said some other districts such as Gopalganj, Begusarai, Munger and Khagaria may also enforce lockdown soon. While Khagaria has 352 cases, Munger has 473 and Muzaffarpur has 500.

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An order by Patna District Magistrate Kumar Ravi said that during the lockdown, government offices and private establishments will remain shut. People will be allowed to buy groceries, dairy items, vegetables and other essential items between 6 am and 10 am and 4 pm to 7 pm. Commercial vehicles will not be allowed, but those associated with essential services such as healthcare and the media, will be allowed to use their vehicles.

Bhagalpur District Magistrate Pranav Kumar Wednesday announced that the district would be under lockdown from 6 am on July 9 to 6 am on July 16. Kumar told reporters that the urban areas would be completely shut, except for essential items such as dairy, vegetables and groceries, which will be open from 6 am to 10 am and 4 pm to 7 pm.

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While most government offices will stay shut, essential services, including police, healthcare, media and e-commerce will be exempted from the lockdown, Kumar said.

For those associated with essential services, strict rules of wearing masks in public will apply.

Kumar said the decision was taken in view of a spike in Covid-19 cases and the failure of people to wear masks and maintain social distancing.

‘33,793 more booths’

Bihar Deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi said on Wednesday that the Election Commission of India had assured that 33,793 additional polling booths would be set up to maintain physical distancing during the state polls. “Rules of voting and holding rallies would be changed and digital campaigns would be cost-friendly,” he told the media.

First uploaded on: 09-07-2020 at 01:40 IST
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