Special teams deployed in every Covid ward, containment zones sealed amid spike in Lucknow

Amidst the surge in the number of COVID-19 cases in Lucknow, the city administration has taken several measures to stop spread of the deadly virus, news agency ANI reported. On Monday, ADCP Central Chiranjeev Nath Sinha said, "We have created separate teams for every ward. All the containment zones have been sealed to stop the spread of Covid."

He further added, "We are providing masks to those who can't afford it. Those who are not wearing masks intentionally will be fined."

Last week, the state government imposed night curfew in Lucknow in a bid to effectively control the rise in cases of Covid-19. The curfew will remain in force between 9 pm and 6 am till 30 April.

Taking to Twitter, the District Magistrate of Lucknow said, "In Lucknow, all government, non-government or privately managed schools, colleges and educational institutions and coaching institutes are closed, except medical, nursing and para-medical institutes, with immediate effect for the control of Covid-19 infection till April 15, 2021."

"However, in recognized educational institutions, examinations/practicals will be conducted in strict compliance with the COVID-19 protocol," he added.

There will be exemption on ferrying essential items and there will be no ban on movement of goods vehicles, the Lucknow district magistrate had said.

Second Wave of Covid-19 worrying: Yogi Adityanath

Meanwhile, the current COVID-19 wave is worrying and people need to take all precautions and follow protocols, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Sunday at an all-party meeting, which was not attended by Samajwadi Party, the main opposition in the state. The meeting was held at the Raj Bhawan here, and Governor Anandiben Patel said the situation was grim and vaccination against COVID-19 should be ramped up.

"In the past one year, speedy action was taken to combat the COVID-19 pandemic in a planned manner. The fight was fought with joint efforts of everyone and in this, UP was fully successful. UP has done the best work in waging war against COVID-19. This had put an effective control over COVID, and the number of cases had become negligible," Patel said at the meeting.

The governor also said, "Now, the novel coronavirus has returned after changing its form, due to which the situation has become grim. Now, we have to take benefit of our past experience, and soon control the phase-2 of COVID-19, so that its spread can be curtailed. It is good that anti-COVID vaccine is available now, and the vaccination has to be effectively done."

The state on Sunday recorded as many as 15,353 new Covid-19 infections, highest single-day spike in UP this year. The caseload in Uttar Pradesh climbed to 6,92,092, according to a government statement The count of active Covid-19 cases in the state stands at 71,241. So far, 6,11,622 patients have recovered from the infection.

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