Madhya Pradesh: Night curfew in Indore, Bhopal city areas from March 17

Bhopal, Mar 16: In view of rising coronavirus cases in the state, the Madhya Pradesh government on Tuesday decided to impose night curfew in Bhopal and Indore municipal areas and also ordered closure of shops at 10 PM in eight other cities.

The restrictions would come into force from Wednesday, an official said. The decision was taken by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan after reviewing the COVID-19 situation at a meeting with senior officials, he said.

The night curfew will be in place in Indore and Bhopal cities from 10 PM to 6 AM, an order issued by Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Dr Rajesh Rajora said. Essential services such as medical shops, ration shops and eateries will be exempted from curfew.

Passengers arriving from outside by flight, train or bus will be allowed to travel to their destination even after 10 PM. Shops will remain closed in Indore, Bhopal, Jabalpur, Gwalior, Ujjain, Ratlam, Chhindwara, Burhanpur, Betul and Khargone cities (which are also district headquarters) from 10 PM to 6 AM.

No public programs will be allowed on the occasion on Holi but individual celebration of the festival will be allowed. Permission of the district administration in these ten districts is mandatory if more than 100 persons are expected to take part in any social, educational, political, religious, sports, entertainment or cultural program.

Thermal screening and one-week isolation for those coming from neighbouring Maharashtra will continue. Madhya Pradesh on Monday reported 797 new coronavirus cases, taking the tally of infections to 2,69,391. The death toll reached 3,890 with three more fatalities.