CHANDIGARH: The Punjab government on Wednesday announced its decision to impose a night curfew from 9 PM - 5 AM across the entire state till April 30 amid rising COVID-19 cases.


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The Captain Amarinder Singh-led Congress government also banned political gatherings across the state till further notice.


 



Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had earlier warned of stricter restrictions if the COVID-19 situation in the state, which is reeling under a massive surge of cases and deaths, does not improve over the next week.


The situation will be reviewed again on April 8, and a decision on further curbs may be taken if the COVID-19 spread continues unchecked, he had told reporters.  


He also underlined the need for aggressive vaccination, particularly in areas with high cases and cities with more than 300 cases.


Amid the surge in Covid-19 cases, several states have announced restrictions, including lockdown, weekend lockdown, night curfews to curb the spread of the COVID-19 virus.  


Ahead of Punjab, the Delhi government had on Tuesday imposed a night curfew in the national capital from 10 pm to 5 am. The order was implemented with immediate effect and will remain effective till April 30. Delhi reported 3,548 new Covid-1919 cases, 2,936 recoveries, and 15 deaths on Monday. With this, total cases in the national capital reached 6,79,962, including 14,589 active cases.


Amid growing concerns over fast-rising cases of COVID-19 infections, India on Wednesday recorded 1,15,736 new coronavirus cases, taking the total tally in the country to 1,28,01,785.


According to the Health Ministry data released at 8 AM, the death toll increased by 630 to 1,66,177. The is the biggest one-day rise in cases in the country ever since the pandemic began.


According to the Health Ministry, there are currently 8,43,473 active cases across the country, while 1,17,92,135 patients have been discharged, with 59,856 discharges reported in the last 24 hours.


As many as 25,14,39,598 samples have been tested for COVID-19 up to 6 April, of which 12,08,329 samples were tested on Tuesday, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said. Meanwhile, more than 8.70 crore vaccine doses have been administered till now, ever since India's inoculation drive began on 16 January.


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