COVID: Haryana extends lockdown till May 24.
The Haryana government on Sunday announced to extend the statewide lockdown till May 24 to contain the coronavirus pandemic, Home Minister Anil Vij said.
The state government has decided to impose lockdown in the state to arrest the spread of COVID-19.
According to state minister Anil Vij, the restrictions will come into effect on Monday (May 17) and will remain in place for the next seven days.
"Mahamari Alert/Surkshit Haryana extended from 17 May to 24 May. Stringent measures will be taken to implement the alert," he said in a tweet.
The decision was taken in view of the worsening Covid-19 situation in the landlocked state.
All essential services will, however, be allowed during the lockdown period.
In a bid to contain the current second Covid-19 wave in Haryana, the state government had first imposed the lockdown on May 3 for a week till May 10.
The Haryana government has termed the lockdown as "Mahamari Alert/Surkshit Haryana (Epidemic Alert/Safe Haryana)".
Haryana has been facing a surge in Covid-19 infections as well as fatalities for the last few weeks, though they have registered a slight fall during the past few days.
The recent surge had seen increased pressure on hospitals with demand for medical oxygen also increasing manifold.
The government has maintained that it is doing its best to tackle the present Covid-19 situation.The government has also stepped up efforts to check the spread of the virus in rural areas with many villages seeing a surge in infections.
During the lockdown, the government had urged residents to stay indoors. However, several categories of people, including those tasked with the maintenance of law and order, emergency and municipal services and the government machinery engaged in anti-Covid duties, have been exempted from the lockdown restrictions.
To curb the virus' spread, the state government had recently put several other restrictions in place including the imposition of restrictions orders under Section 144 of the CrPC and daily night curfew.
