Karnataka has extended the lockdown necessitated by the second wave of the pandemic till June 14. The restrictions will be in force till 6 am on June 14, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said today.
The Chief Minister yesterday said COVID-19 cases are high in rural areas and any move to ease the lockdown would have to be carefully worked out.
The state's Covid technical advisory committee in a report to the government has said positivity rate has to come below 5 per cent and the number of cases should be below 5,000, and only then the restrictions may be eased.
"We have extended the lockdown for another week because in the villages, the Covid situation is worst... If case come down to 5 per cent, we will give relief to everybody," Mr Yediyurappa said.
He announced cash relief to different groups including film and TV industry workers, fishing community, ASHA and anganwadi workers, weavers, and people working in places of worship.
For instance, weavers working in the state's 59,000 power looms will receive Rs 3,000 relief, adding up to Rs 35 crores. Some 22,000 registered unorganised workers of the film and television industry, too, will get the same amount, amounting to 6.6 crores, the Chief Minister said.
Similarly, Rs 12.75 crores will be spent as relief on Karnataka's 42,574 Asha workers at Rs 3,000 per head.
Karnataka has around three lakh active Covid cases.
Karnataka initially announced 14-day "close down" from April 27, but subsequently imposed a complete lockdown from May 10 to 24 as Covid cases continued to rise. It was extended again till June 7, before today's fresh announcement came.
The Karnataka government is also set to administer more than 60 lakh doses of vaccines this month. This will enable the state to vaccinate a total of 2 crore people by June 30, Mr Yediyurappa said today. "...I thank PM Narendra Modi Ji for his continued support towards Karnataka's vaccination drive," Mr Yediyurappa tweeted.
State Health Minister K Sudhakar said more than 58.71 lakh doses of vaccines will be supplied to Karnataka this month. This includes supply of over 45 lakh doses from the centre and 13.7 lakh doses via the state government's direct procurement route.
K Sudhakar said state capital Bengaluru's vaccination coverage is one of the highest among big cities in India, with more than 28.3 lakh people inoculated with at least one dose, or 28.6 per cent of the city's population.
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