Sunday lockdown, night curfew in TN
CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu will come under a lockdown during the night from Tuesday as the state fights to control a second, furious wave of Covid 19. The night curfew will run all over the State from 10:00pm to 4:00am.
On Sundays, the state will remain locked down during the day also.
The government also announced that Plus Two board exams are postponed.
An official media statement, however, said the ongoing practical exams will be held as scheduled. All college and university professors are advised to take online classes; all government and private college and university exams should be conducted online.
The government also banned holding of summer camps in view of the sharp increase in cases.
In Chennai, sources at the state police headquarters said 200 checkpoints will be set up in the metro city. Buses will be operated from 4 am to 8 pm. Similar measures will be in place in other parts of the State too.
The government’s fresh restrictions to prevent spread of the virus, came hours ater Chief Minister Edappadi Palaiswamy held a meeting with Chief Secretary Rajeev Ranjan, Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan, and other senior officials of the government.
Public, private, taxis, autos, taxi services, interState and inter-district bus services will also be not allowed during the curfew. “However, cabs, autos and taxis will be allowed for emergency medical services, airports and railway stations during the curfew, apart from essential services like, milk and newspaper distribution, hospital, medical laboratories, pharmacies, ambulances, hearse vans, freight vehicles, print and TV media and petrol bunks.”
The government also announced that those employed in continuous process industries and those manufacturing essential items are allowed to function during the curfew and their staff are also allowed to go for night duty.
On Sundays, all fish-meat, vegetable markets, cinema theatres, commercial complexes and shops will remain closed, the government said.
At the same time, essential services are allowed and hotels can function from 0600 hrs to 1000 hrs, 1200 hrs to 1500 hrs and 1800 hrs to 2100 hrs for take-aways only. E-commerce plaforms like Swiggy and Zomato also get this exemption.
There will be no ban on allowing a maximum of 100 people for weddings and 50 for funerals during the total lockdown period.