No Public Gatherings In UP Till June 30, Orders Yogi Adityanath

No public gatherings will be allowed in Uttar Pradesh till June 30, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said this morning amid concern over the rising numbers of COVID-19 cases in the state. The order, which will impact large gatherings like political rallies and social functions, has been described as a necessary measure to control the spread of the virus.

"Chief Minister Yogi Adityanathji has given strict instructions to the officers that no crowd of any kind can be gathered by June 30. This decision has been taken with the intention of keeping the corona under control," Mrityunjay Kumar, the media advisor to the Chief Minister, tweeted.

The decision was taken after Yogi Adityanath held a meeting with the chairpersons of 11 committees tasked with handling the COVID-19 outbreak in the state.

It also comes as the centre today re-opened shops in residential areas - except in malls and shopping complexes. However, states have been given authority to override or modify these instructions, if needed.

These orders are also not applicable in coronavirus hotspots or containment zones, of which Uttar Pradesh has several. Lucknow District Magistrate Abhishek Prakash has been quoted by news agency ANI as saying there will be no relaxation in lockdown guidelines for the UP capital.

In addition, at least two states - Delhi and Assam - have said they will not allow shops to open before assessing the situation. Delhi will hold a review later today and Assam will assess the situation Monday. 

On Friday the Chief Minister also said his government would bring back migrant workers stranded in other states as a result of the nationwide lockdown.

These men and women, left jobless and without money or shelter in other states after the lockdown temporarily ended almost all economic activity, will be brought back in phases, the Chief Minister said.

The UP government had earlier sent 1,000 buses to bring back around four lakh migrant workers, as well as around 300 buses (from Agra and Jhansi) to bring back students stuck in Rajasthan's Kota - a popular coaching centre for competitive exams.

Uttar Pradesh has reported more than 1,600 COVID-19 cases so far, with 25 deaths linked to the infectious virus. Across the country the number of coronavirus cases has crossed 24,000 with 775 deaths linked to the virus.