Lockdown-like curfew in Delhi on weekends: Check time, guidelines, restrictions

New Delhi, Jan 04: Amid alarming surge in Covid cases, the Delhi government has imposed a weekend curfew from Friday 10 pm to Monday 5 am in the national capital.

Addressing the media, Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said "DDMA has decided to impose a curfew in Delhi on Saturdays and Sundays to curb COVID surge. All govt officials except for those engaged in essential services will work from home. 50% workforce of private offices will work from home.

"Cases of Omicron variant have been rapidly rising. Delhi has reported around 11,000 positive cases in the past 8-10 days, of which around 350 patients are in hospital, only 124 patients need oxygen and 7 are on a ventilator," he said.

The announcement comes after Delhi lieutenant governor Anil Baijal chaired a crucial meeting virtually with Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and other ministers.

• According to the new rules, the DDMA has decided to impose weekend curfew in Delhi in which no non-essential movement will be permitted.
• Government officials barring essential services to work from home in Delhi.
• Private offices in Delhi will be allowed to operate with 50 per cent capacity.
• Buses and metro trains will again run at full seating capacity to avoid crowding outside metro stations and at bus stops. But no one can travel without a mask.

Delhi on Monday reported 4,099 fresh COVID-19 cases with a positivity rate of 6.46 per cent.

Last week, Delhi government sounded a 'yellow alert' under which schools, colleges, cinemas, and gyms were closed with immediate effects. Already, a night curfew has been imposed from 10 pm (earlier 11 pm) to 5 am in the national capital.

According to the DDMA-approved Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), a positivity rate of more than five per cent for two consecutive days is one of the criteria to declare a 'red alert' which means a 'total curfew' and halting of most economic activities in the capital.

Although Delhi has put in place strict curbs, reports have said that the national capital could report at least 20,000-25,000 cases every day starting mid-January.

Delhi could report 8,000-9,000 cases by January 8. By January mid the caseload could be at 20-25,000 cases, NDTV reported quoting sources. The estimate is taking into account the surge in number of Omicron cases.

The report also said that Britain has started reporting deaths, so the new wave cannot be taken lightly.