West Bengal to face tougher lockdown from July 9

Kolkata : Amid surge in coronavirus cases in Bengal, the government on Tuesday announced that a stricter lockdown will be imposed in containment zones and buffer zones from July 9. Tough restrictions will be imposed on public mobility and trade in these areas.

The containment zones and buffer zones around them will be clubbed together and constitute a “broad-based” containment zone where a total lockdown will be imposed from 5 pm on Thursday, a government order signed by Additional Chief Secretary, Home, Alapan Bandyopadhyay said.

The development comes after the state registered 800 new cases in the course of three consecutive days.

West Bengal has reported a total of 23,837 cases till Tuesday and the contagion has claimed the lives of 804 people, including those who had other concurrent illnesses called comorbidities in medical parlance.

“These broader containment zones may be subjected to strict lockdown and all offices, government and private, all non-essential activities, congregations, transportations and all marketing, industrial and trading activities be closed,” the order said.

The local authorities have been asked to make home delivery of essential good arrangements in such areas. “Residents of the containment zones may be exempted and prohibited from attending government and private offices: in fact, their ingress and egress may be strictly regulated,” the order said.

The authorities have not announced that till when these strict restrictions will stay in place.