Haryana COVID curbs: Cinema halls closed in Gurugram, Faridabad and 3 other districts, check SOPs here

Chandigarh: Amid a surge in COVID-19 cases in Haryana, authorities on Saturday ordered the closure of cinema halls, multiplexes and sports complexes in five districts, including Gurugram and Faridabad, from January 2 to 12, according to an official order.

The other three districts where the restrictions will be applicable are Ambala, Panchkula and Sonipat. This comes on a day when a night curfew from 11 pm to 5 am came into force in the state.

All cinema halls, theatres, multiplexes shall remain closed in Gurugram, Faridabad, Ambala, Panchkula and Sonipat from January 2 to January 12, an order issued by the Haryana State Disaster Management Authority said.

All sports complexes, swimming pools and stadia shall remain closed except when being used for training of sportspersons for participation in national and international sports events, it said.

Government and private offices, except for emergency/essential services have been advised to function with 50 per cent staff attendance, it added. Malls and markets will be allowed to open till 5 pm, while bars and restaurants will be allowed to operate at 50 per cent seating capacity, the order said.

Haryana reported 552 fresh Covid cases on Saturday. Gurugram district alone accounted for 298 of these cases, according to a health department bulletin.

Gurugram, which falls under the National Capital Region, has been witnessing a surge in coronavirus cases for over a week now. Faridabad reported 107 fresh cases, Ambala 32 and Panchkula 26, the bulletin stated.

As of Friday, Haryana had 63 cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, according to official data.

To check the spread of the viral infection, the state government has banned people eligible for vaccination but not fully vaccinated from entering shopping malls, cinema halls, restaurants and grain markets, among other crowded places, starting Saturday.