Region
Manipur extends night curfew following increase of Omicron cases
Our Correspondent
Imphal, Dec. 30 (EMN): The Manipur government extended night curfew from 9 pm to 4 am with exemption for essential services and medical emergencies in view of the reported increase of the highly transmissible Covid-19 variant B.1.1529 (Omicron) cases in the country. Earlier the curfew was in force from 10 pm to 4 am.
Dr. Rajesh Kumar, Chief Secretary, Manipur, who is also the chairperson of the Executive Committee of State Disaster Management Authority, issued an order in this regard on Dec. 29.
The order came after the detection of the Omicron variant of SARSCOV2 in an international passenger from Tanzania on Dec. 28.
The order also restricted music concerts, celebratory feasts, Thabal Chongba, a traditional festival dance besides restrictions on large gatherings of people in enclosed areas or indoor halls.
“All district magistrates shall strictly enforce the above restrictions by invoking relevant provisions of law,” the order said. “This order is in continuation of the order of even number dated Dec. 12, 2021 and shall remain in force till Jan. 31, 2022”.
According to the Directorate of Health Services, about 480 international travellers have been under surveillance by the health officials. Out of the 480 international arrivals in Manipur, 174 have completed their 14 days of surveillance with all of them testing negative while the remaining 306 are under surveillance.
On Thursday, the state reported 17 new Covid-19 cases, when 1254 samples were tested, taking the tally to 1,25,778 with zero fatalities and 190 active cases. With 12 new recoveries, the state’s total recovered cases reached 1,23,586 (98.26%). So far, 23,10,302 residents (first dose – 13,23,253 and 2nd doses – 9,87,049) have been vaccinated.