By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR: No Respite to Lockdown, July 1 New Dateline. The Odisha Government on Wednesday announced that lockdown restrictions would continue in the State till July 1 (5 am). In the wake of the second Covid wave, the State Government had imposed a lockdown from May 5 to 14, which was first extended to June 1 and subsequently to June 17 (5 am).
All restrictions regarding marriage, cremation, meetings, social gatherings, and religious places would continue as before. All temples and other places of warship will remain closed.
Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra said, “To break the chain of Covid-19 infection, the State Government has imposed lockdown in three phases since May 5. The State has crossed the peak. Now the test positivity rate (TPR) has come down from 14 per cent to 6 per cent.”
All 30 districts have been divided into two groups. As many 17 southern and western districts have been marked as Category A, where the TPR has remained below 5% while the remaining 13 districts of coastal and adjourning area have been put in Category B, where the TPR is high.
As the western and southern districts are now reporting a very low TPR, little relaxation has been given in these districts, Mahapatra said.
The districts are Sundargarh, Ganjam, Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, Nuapada, Deogarh, Kalahandi, Subarnapur, Koraput, Jharsuguda, Kandhamal, Bargarh, Boudh, Rayagada, Gajapati, Sambalpur and Balangir.
The Category B districts are Puri, Kendrapada, Khordha, Jajpur, Baleswar, Bhadrak, Jagatsinghpur, Dhenkanal, Angul, Cuttack, Nayagarh and Mayurbhanj. In Category-A districts, the shops for essential goods will open from 6 am to 5 pm and in Category-B districts from 6 am to 1 pm.Street vending for takeaway packets is allowed only in 17 districts under Category A. However, the Chief Secretary informed that night curfew and weekend shutdown would continue across State till July 1.
Keeping in view livelihood of milk farmers, the Government has decided to open sweets shops in the State. They can only give parcels.
The cycle sale and automobile repair shops will continue to remain open. Morning walk and jugging are allowed, but parks and gyms would remain closed.All essential services, transport of goods, industrial activities and construction activities would be allowed. But public buses would not run.
