With a triple lockdown announced in four districts of Kerala from midnight of May 15, Kerala Chief Minister-designate Pinarayi Vijayan said that 10,000 police officers have been deployed for its effective implementation. Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur, Ernakulam and Malappuram are the districts where the triple lockdown has been announced.
The government has announced that in the districts where the triple lockdown has been announced, petrol bunks and medical stores will remain open, and bakeries and grocery shops will be opened only on alternate days. Banks will be working only on Tuesday and Friday. Cooperative banks will be working on Monday and Thursday from 10 am to 1 pm In the four districts. Domestic workers and home nurses can travel by getting an online pass. Plumbers and electricians can also travel in emergency situations after getting a pass. No other social activities, other than community kitchens and Janakeeya restaurants, will be allowed in the places where the triple lockdown is announced.
The borders of the four districts will remain closed. Only one road connecting these districts to the others will be open. Those working in emergency services will be required to show their identity cards and then only they will be allowed to enter these districts.
Higher police officials will be deployed in the places where the triple lockdown has been announced. Drone surveillance will be used to find out people breaching physical distancing and geofencing technology will be used to find if someone is breaking quarantine rules. Not only people who break the quarantine but those who helped them break the rules will also be charged under the Epidemic Disease ordinance.
Kerala reported 32,680 fresh COVID-19 cases on Saturday, pushing the caseload to 20,88,208, while the death toll mounted to 6,339 with 96 more deaths reported in 24 hours, the state government said. As many as 29,442 persons have recovered, taking the recoveries to 16,66,232 and the active cases to 4,45,334. In the last 24 hours ending 2 pm, 1,22,628 samples were tested and the Test Positivity Rate (TPR) was 26.65 per cent, Chief Minister-designate Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram.
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