Coronavirus crisis: Kerala under complete lockdown till Monday; Shabarimala temple unlocked

Thiruvananthapuram, July 17: Amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, a complete lockdown has come into effect across Kerala from today (July 17) onwards and will remain in place till Monday morning.

It should be noted that all establishments and services, including banks and other financial institutions, will remain closed on Saturday and Sunday.

However, shops in categories A, B and C will be allowed to open till 8 pm on the days they were allowed to operate earlier. The relaxation was given in view of Eid-ul-Adha, which will be celebrated on July 21.

Areas under category A are those with Test Positivity Rate (TPR) of up to 5 per cent, while those under category B have a TPR of up to 10 per cent. The corresponding figures in categories C and D are up to 15 per cent and above 15 per cent respectively.

Strict restrictions has been imposed, along with the closure of all commercial establishments, in Category D areas.

On Friday, Kerala logged 13,750 new COVID-19 cases and 130 deaths, taking the count to 31,30,833 and the death toll to 15,155.

Meanwhile, Sabarimala temple of Lord Ayyappa reopened for devotees from today. The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has announced that the temple will remain open for a period of five days, ie from July 17 to July 21 to conduct the monthly rituals.

According to the guidelines, devotees wishing to visit the Sabarimala temple will have to provide a complete COVID-19 vaccination certificate or a negative RT-PCR report issued within 48 hours.