Karnataka extends lockdown till June 7, daily cases above 30,000

Bengaluru : Karnataka Chief Minister Yediyurappa on Friday announced an extension in the statewide lockdown till June 7 as daily cases remained over 30,000 mark.

Earlier, lockdown was announced on May 10 which was supposed to end on May 24.

On Friday, the state reported 32,218 fresh infections and 353 fatalities, taking the total infections and deaths due to Covid to 23,67,742 and 24,207 respectively. It has 5,14,238 active cases.

"Heeding to the suggestions of experts, we have decided to extend the stringent restriction from May 24 to June 7," CM BS Yeddiyurappa said.

He also urged people to cooperate and follow covid-appropriate behavior in public places. He asked people to maintain hygiene, wear mask and maintain social distance while stepping out due to unavaoidable reasons.

In this phase of lockdown, there will be no restrictions on inter-state and intra-state movement of persons as permitted by the revised guidelines and there will be unrestricted and smooth movement of all types of goods, including empty goods vehicles.

"There has been a steady decline in the number of active and new cases in the state due to implementation of strict containment measures. However, it has been observed that there is a gradual ingress of Covid cases in semi-urban and rural areas," the state government said in a statement.

The second wave of coronavirus has forced many states to go for aggressive lockdown to stop spread of COVID-19 infection. Neighbouring state Kerala has extended its lockdown till May 30.

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