To curb the spike in Covid-19 cases, the district collectors of Amravati, Yavatmal, Akola and Wardha have imposed strict restrictions, including a lockdown and curfew. In Yavatmal, the District Collector M Devender Singh has announced a 10-day lockdown, while his Amravati counterpart Shailesh Naval has ordered weekend restrictions.
In Akola, District Collector Jitendra Papalkar has announced a lockdown until February 28. There will be curfew on Sundays from 8pm to 6am, while the weekly markets have been suspended until further orders.
In Wardha, the district administration has imposed a curfew from midnight. In all these districts, the administration has decided to take punitive action against violators of Covid norms.
A lockdown has been announced in Amravati district from Saturday 8pm to Monday 7am. "I advise all the people of the district to adhere to Covid-19 guidelines, failing which strict action will be taken by the concerned authorities," Collector Naval said. He further declared that the district would be closed on Sunday and only essential services would be provided.
In Yavatmal district, restrictions have been tightened. "Restrictions are being put in place in Yavatmal district due to rising Covid-19 cases. It is not a lockdown," Collector M D Singh told ANI. Schools and colleges will remain closed till February 28. Restaurants, function halls will be able to operate at less than 50 per cent capacity, while marriage ceremonies will have limited attendees. An assembly of five or more people will not be allowed, Singh added.
Further, Chief Secretary Sanjay Kumar directed the respective district collectors to immediately declare containment zones in areas with a large number of corona patients.
There is concentration of cases in the Achalpur taluka of Amravati district, Amravati Municipal Corporation, Yavatmal, Pusad, and Pandharkawada in Yavatmal district, Akot and Murtijapur talukas of Akola district and in the Akola Municipal Corporation. The Chief Secretary has directed that these areas be declared containment zones.
The daily positivity rate of corona patients in Akola district is 32 per cent and the weekly positivity rate is 24 per cent. Amravati district has a daily positivity rate of 48 per cent and 35 per cent per week, while Yavatmal district has a daily and weekly positivity rate of 15 per cent. Comparatively, the daily positivity rate of the entire state is 8.8 per cent and the weekly positivity rate is 7.76 per cent. Hence, major restrictions have been imposed in these districts. 0/01
In these districts, gatherings of five or more people will be prohibited. The administration has banned religious processions, festivals, ceremonies, get-togethers and other social events. Only 50 people can be present at weddings.
In Yavatmal district, not more than 20 people can be present at a funeral. Failure to wear a mask in a public place will attract a fine of Rs 500 for the first violation, Rs 750 for the second and Rs 1,000 in the third instance. The police will thereafter lodge an FIR against the violator.
