The Kerala government on Thursday, June 10, announced that further restrictions will be put in place June 11 and 12, in addition to the state-wide lockdown that is already in place. The state government had imposed the lockdown on May 8, and has been extended multiple times. The lockdown is currently in place until June 16. As part of the additional restrictions imposed for the weekend, takeaway parcels are not allowed from hotels and restaurants, with only home delivery permitted. However, the government has announced certain relaxations during this period. Construction activities, following strict COVID-19 norms, will be permitted on June 12 and 13.
Mobile phone repair shops, along with other electronics repair shops, are permitted to be open on Friday, June 11. Stationery, jewellery, footwear, textile shops and opticians are allowed to operate only on Friday, from 7 am to 7 pm. As per the current guidelines, shops selling essentials, raw materials for industries and building materials are allowed to function on all days. Banks in the state are allowed to function on alternate days-- Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had earlier said that, after June 17, all government and partially-government institutions, public sector organisations, corporations and commissions can start functioning with 50% staff.
Kerala reported 14,424 new COVID-19 cases and 194 deaths on Thursday, taking the caseload to 26,58,565 and the death toll to 10,631. A total of 17,994 people recuperated from the disease on this day, taking the tally of those who have recovered from COVID-19 in the state to 25,42,242. Currently there are 1,35,298 people under treatment for the disease.
State Health Minister Veena George said the state tested 1,07,250 samples in the last 24 hours, and the test positivity rate was 13.45%.As of Thursday, the state has tested 2,09,10,418 samples. Among the districts, Thiruvananthapuram recorded the highest number of cases, (2,030), followed by Kollam (1,605) and Malappuram (1,597).
"Out of those found infected on Thursday, 109 reached the state from outside, while 13,535 contracted the disease through their contacts.The source of infection of 718 are yet to be traced and 62 health workers are also among the infected," the minister said in a statement.
(With PTI inputs)
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