State of Kerala to impose night curfews starting Monday: CM Pinarayi Vijayan

The Kerala government has decided to impose night curfews starting on Monday due to the spread of Covid-19 in the state, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Saturday. Curfew hours will be from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. Kerala has seen an increase in Covid-19 cases since the lockdown was relaxed, CM Pinarayi Vijayan said while announcing the night curfew. As a result of the Onam rush, the pandemic was ‘further aggravated’.

‘Vaccinate more, prevent death’
Kerala’s chief minister said his government’s objective is to prevent deaths as much as possible and vaccinate as many people as possible. ‘We hope to achieve herd immunity at the earliest possible time. Based on the population, Kerala has been the fastest in administering the vaccination. In one single day, we managed to administer more than 5 lakh doses,’ said CM Pinarayi Vijayan.

‘The death rate is still under control, but there has been a proportionate increase in the number of cases. Among the key states, Kerala has managed to keep the deaths low. Data reveals that despite the high number of cases, the Kerala CM praised his administration’s efforts for keeping the death count lower than the national average. Kerala is just above 0.5, but the national average is over 1.3,’ CM Pinarayi Vijayan said.

‘Despite having the largest population density in the nation, the smallest rural-urban divide, a high percentage of elderly people, cancer patients, and other patients with comorbidities, our efforts have kept the death toll low’, he said. CM Pinarayi Vijayan has also warned the state’s citizens about the third wave of Covid-19. Consequently, ‘there is a third wave on the horizon and we should prepare for it,’ he said.

Read more: 14 From Kerala join ISIS-K, the group behind the Kabul airport attack: Report

70% of cases in Kerala
As per data provided on Saturday by the Union Health Ministry, Kerala recorded 32,801 fresh cases of Covid-19 in the last 24 hours. Of the 46,759 newly diagnosed cases in the country, 70 percent originated in Kerala. In the past 24 hours, 509 people have died from the infection in India. The highest number of casualties was reported in Kerala, where 179 people died.