As the country witnesses an exponential rise in coronavirus cases, largely driven by the Omicron variant, Assam has tightened the curbs in a set of fresh rules to check the spread of the virus. All people who test positive for Covid will be treated as suspected cases of the new highly contagious variant.
"We suspect that there are several Omicron cases in Assam but detection is taking time. Assam will now follow the Omicron treatment protocol for all Covid patients," Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said today. The cases are doubling every two days and the state is likely to see the peak by January 20.
In a set of fresh rules, which will come into effect from tomorrow, the night curfew has been extended by one hour - instead of 11 pm, it now begins at 10 pm and ends at 6 AM.
Those who are not vaccinated will no longer be allowed in public places.
Hotels, restaurants, cinema halls, and malls will be fined Rs 25,000 for allowing entry of those who have not taken both doses.
At government offices, employees who are not vaccinated won't be allowed after January 15. They will be given leaves without pay, as per the new rules.
For students of nursery, classes 1-5, schools will be shut. A hybrid model for the students of classes 9 -12 will be in force - they will attend the classes physically for three days, and rest of the days, it will be online.
The northeastern state has recorded nine Omicron cases so far - all patients have now turned negative.
The state may see 12,000 cases a day at its peak.
Assam logged 844 cases in the last 24 hours. Till last week, less than 200 cases were being registered in a day.
India's Covid cases breached the 1 lakh mark today as the third wave continues to affect people across the country.
New XEC Covid Variant Spreads To 27 Countries, Here's What We Know So Far Study Shows How Long Covid Is Debilitating Children's Health From FLiRT To FLuQE: What To Know About The Latest Covid Variants Wary Of NASA Satellites, How Farmers Time Crop-Burning, Scientist Explains New Zealand MP Leads Traditional Dance, Rips Up Copy Of Bill In Parliament This Trump Pick Might Spell Trouble For Indian Techies, H-1B Visa Seekers Key Government Agency To Probe Ola Electric Over Product Issues Hate Speech Watchdog To Quit Elon Musk's X Over Updated Terms Of Service European Watchdog Partially Approves New Alzheimer's Drug Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.