NE NEWS SERVICE
GANDHINAGAR, MAY 3
Sending a strong message by not toeing the Centre’s order granting certain relaxations in ”Red” zones during the third phase of the coronavirus-induced lockdown beginning Monday, the Gujarat government has decided against giving any relief in six cities and as many municipalities due to the high number of cases.
Aerial Salute by #Airwarriors to #CoronaWarriors#IndiaSalutesCoronaWarriors#CoronaWarriorsIndia#GujaratFightsCovid19#IndiaFightsCorona@IAF_MCC pic.twitter.com/6LPuivU7Ul
— Vijay Rupani (Modi Ka Parivar) (@vijayrupanibjp) May 3, 2020
A senior official said on Sunday that Chief Minister Vijay Rupani had decided against granting any relief in the municipal limits of Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, Gandhinagar, and Bhavnagar — all in ”Red” zone, and Rajkot Municipal Corporation which falls under ”Orange” zone.
In the evening, Ahmedabad District Collector has declared the entire district as containment zone till further orders.
કોવિડ-19 ના સંક્રમણને રોકી કોરોનાની વૈશ્વિક મહામારીને માત આપવા ભારત સરકારના દિશાનિર્દેશના પગલે મુખ્યમંત્રી શ્રી વિજયભાઈ રૂપાણીના માર્ગદર્શન હેઠળ ગુજરાતમાં લંબાવવામાં આવેલ લૉકડાઉન અને તેના ચૂસ્ત અમલીકરણ અંગે રાજ્ય સરકાર દ્વારા લેવામાં આવેલ મહત્વપૂર્ણ નિર્ણયો.#GujaratFightsCovid19 pic.twitter.com/Qv8i1bNMd9
— CMO Gujarat (@CMOGuj) May 3, 2020
“No relaxation will be allowed in the lockdown rules for another two weeks in municipal corporations of Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, Gandhinagar, and Bhavnagar, as well as six municipalities of Botad, Bopal, Khambhat, Bareja, Godhra and Umreth which are under red zone (as per the Centre’s notification).
Aerial Salute by #Airwarriors to #CoronaWarriors
Glimpses from Gandhinagar.#IndiaSalutesCoronaWarriors#CoronaWarriorsIndia#GujaratFightsCovid19#IndiaFightsCorona@IAF_MCC pic.twitter.com/ckNogHoRIN
— Vijay Rupani (Modi Ka Parivar) (@vijayrupanibjp) May 3, 2020
“No relaxation will be allowed in Rajkot Municipal corporation as well, which is under the orange zone. This was decided by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani at a high-level meeting held on Saturday,” said Ashwani Kumar, Secretary to Chief Minister, in a press briefing via video-conferencing.
કોરાના વાઇરસના લક્ષણો ૧૪ દિવસ પછી માલૂમ પડે છે, જેના કારણે વધુ લોકો સંક્રમિત થાય છે. કોવિડ-૧૯ અંગેની જાણકારી જો ત્વરીત મળી રહે તો તેના વધુ સંક્રમણને રોકી શકાય છે. આ માટે ગુજરાતના વલસાડ જિલ્લાની લેબકેર ડાયગ્નોસ્ટીક પ્રા.લી દ્વારા કોવિદ-૧૯ માટેની રેપીડ ટેસ્ટ કીટ ભારતીય… pic.twitter.com/erOTlppW6S
— Gujarat Information (@InfoGujarat) May 3, 2020
As on Saturday, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, and Surat together accounted for over 4,500 of the total 5,054 COVID-19 cases in Gujarat.
Though the Centre has allowed standalone shops and private offices (with 33 percent staff) to remain open in ”Red” zones outside containment areas, the state government has decided against such relaxation within the limits of the above six municipal corporations and as many municipalities.
“Except for the shops selling essential items, no shops will be allowed to remain open in the above-mentioned areas. No offices will also be allowed to remain open,” Kumar said.
કોરોના સામે લડી રહેલા જમીની યોદ્ધા એવા તબીબો પ્રત્યે એરફોર્સના આસમાની યોદ્ધા દ્વારા કૃતજ્ઞતા સાથે હેલિકોપ્ટર દ્વારા અમદાવાદની સિવિલ અને બી. જે. મેડીકલ કોલેજ હોસ્પિટલ પર પુષ્પવર્ષા કરવામાં આવી હતી. pic.twitter.com/OSJX1Q6t4f
— Gujarat Information (@InfoGujarat) May 3, 2020
No paan shops selling cigarettes, paan masala, gutkha, or permit liquor shops will be allowed to operate in any part of the state irrespective of the zones during the lockdown period, he said.
The state government has, however, allowed industries to resume operations in rural areas, two municipal corporations — Junagadh and Jamnagar, and 156 municipalities on the condition of adhering to social-distancing norms, Kumar added.
Ambedkar bridge completely closed for all kind of traffic till further orders. @TOIAhmedabad @AhmedabadPolice @Divya_Bhaskar @GujaratPolice pic.twitter.com/RDHK14zxVW
— Shamsher Singh IPS (@Shamsher_IPS) May 3, 2020
The government has allowed the opening of salons, beauty parlours and tea shops in ”Orange” and ”Green” zones, the official said.
Taxis and cab services are also allowed in these zones on the condition that only two passengers, besides the driver, can travel.
Kumar further said the government had decided to restrict people from coming out of their houses between 7 pm and 7 am in the areas placed under the strict lockdown.
કોરોનાના ની પરિસ્થિતિ ને પગલે લોકડાઉનના અમલ દરમિયાન ગુજરાતમાં ફસાયેલા પરપ્રાંતીઓ ને આજે તેમના વતન મોકલવા માટે ખાસ વ્યવસ્થા રાજ્ય સરકાર દ્વારા કરાઈ હતી. આજે પ્રથમ તબક્કામાં અમદાવાદથી આગરા જતી ટ્રેનમા સાબરમતી સ્ટેશનથી ૧૨૦૦ અને સુરત સેન્ટ્રલ રેલવે સ્ટેશન પરથી ઓડીશાના… pic.twitter.com/R1T4uE2RmM
— Gujarat Information (@InfoGujarat) May 2, 2020
State transport buses have been allowed to operate in green zones with 50 percent capacity, Kumar said.
“Drivers and conductors will face action if they ferry more than 30 passengers in one bus,” he said.
Relaxation has been given to industries to operate in rural areas as well as municipal corporations of Junagadh and Jamnagar.
“They will have to operate in a staggered manner, and have to screen workers and maintain social distancing norms,” he added.
Kumar also said that permissions and passes will not be required to be renewed for the third phase of the lockdown, which is slated to remain in force till May 17, as they will be considered valid without the need to apply afresh.
COVID-19 cases up by 374 to 5,428; 28 die in a single day
Gujarat on Sunday reported 374 new COVID-19 cases and the highest single-day deaths at 28, with Ahmedabad alone accounting for 23, taking the overall number of the affected people to 5,428 and fatalities to 290, a Health department official said. The number of recovered patients in the state crossed the 1,000-mark and stood at 1,042.
While Ahmedabad reported 274 new coronavirus positive cases, Vadodara and Surat reported 25 cases each and Mehsana 21, the official said. With this, the total number of the cases in Ahmedabad, which is the worst-hit, rose to 3,817, the official said, adding that the number of the infected people in Surat and Vadodara now stands at 686 and 350, respectively.
“A total of 23 of the 28 deceased were from Ahmedabad. Of the remaining five, two deaths were reported from Surat, and one each in Vadodara, Anand and Gandhinagar,” said Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi.
She said 24 of the 28 deceased were suffering from either of underlying health conditions like lung disease, asthma, hypertension, diabetes, kidney disease among others. The overall number of the people who have succumbed to the COVID-19 disease in Ahmedabad district now stands at 208.
Surat and Vadodara have reported the overall death toll at 30 and 25, respectively, Ravi added. Meanwhile, the number of the recovered patients in the state crossed the 1,000-mark and stood at 1,042, after 146 more people discharged on Sunday, including 71 from Ahmedabad and 57 from Surat, Ravi said.
Recovery of COVID-19 patients was also reported from eight other districts, she said. Devbhoomi-Dwarka district has become the 31st district in the state to report COVID-19 cases. “Three cases were reported from Devbhhomi-Dwarka district,” Ravi added.
Fresh cases were also reported from Mahisagar (10), Gandhinagar (3), Patan (1), Banaskantha (7), Botad (3), Dahod (1), and Aravalli (1).
Gujarat now has a total of 4,096 active cases, 31 of whom are on a ventilator, she said. “The state has so far tested 80,060 samples, including 5,944 in the last 24 hours,” Ravi said.
Gujarat COVID-19 cases are as follows: Positive cases 5,428, new cases 374, deaths 290, discharge 1,042, active cases 4,096 and people tested so far 80,060.
23 persons die, Maninagar also under containment
A record 23 people succumbed to COVID-19 disease in hotspot Ahmedabad in Gujarat in a single day on Sunday, taking the overall number of the fatalities in the district to 208, officials said.
The biggest city in Gujarat also reported 274 new coronavirus positive cases, which now accounts for 3,817 of the total 5,428 cases in the state.
“Of the 23 deceased, 19 patients were suffering from comorbidities,” stated an official release.
Meanwhile, the number of the recovered patients in the district rose to 533 with 71 people discharged from hospitals, it said.
Struggling to check the spread of coronavirus cases, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has brought one more ward — Maninagar — in South Zone under the containment zones, taking their number to ten.
Of the ten, the central region in Ahmedabad has five wards under the containment zone, including Jamalpur, Khadia, Dariyapur, Shahpur and Asarwa while three containment zones are located in the south region, including Behrampura, Danilimda and Maninagar wards.
“One ward each in north and east zones of Gomtipur and Saraspur has also been placed under the containment zone,” said Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner Vijay Nehra.
He said Jamalpur is the worst-affected area, accounting for 33 per cent of the total COVID-19 deaths in the city as well as reporting the highest number of cases.
The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has also appointed ten senior officers as nodal officers for as many containment zones to ensure strict enforcement of the third phase of the lockdown beginning on Monday.
“They will coordinate with local politicians, religious heads, and police to ensure this,” Nehra said.
Relaxations for movement during lockdown given to migrant workers only, not for others: MHA
The Union Home Ministry on Sunday made it clear that the relaxations given for the movement of people during the lockdown was available only to distressed migrant workers.
In a communication to all States and Union Territories, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said the home ministry allowed movement of such stranded persons, who had moved from their native places or workplaces, just before the lockdown period, but could not return to their native places or workplaces on account of restrictions placed on movement of persons and vehicles as part of lockdown measures.
The facilitation envisaged in the orders is meant for such distressed persons, but does not extend to those categories of persons, who are otherwise residing normally at places, other than the native places for purposes of work etc., and who wish to visit their native places in normal course, the communication said.
Several lakh migrant workers were stranded due to the lockdown in various parts of the country.
