Weekend Lockdown In Maharashtra Amid Worrying Covid Surge, Other Top Stories

In Maharashtra, the worst-hit state in India by pandemic, the Uddhav Thackeray-government on Sunday announced new restrictions including a night curfew in the state and a "strict lockdown" over the weekends from Friday 8 pm to Monday 7 am amid an unprecedented surge in coronavirus cases. Delhi recorded 4,033 fresh coronavirus cases, the highest daily surge this year. Central teams comprising public health specialists and clinicians will be sent to Maharashtra, Punjab and Chhattisgarh because of the high number of fresh daily cases and the disproportionate number of deaths, the Prime Minister's office said at the end of a meeting on Sunday. At least 22 security personnel have been killed in the line of duty after an encounter on Saturday with Maoists in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district, about 400 km from state capital Raipur. These are some of the top stories this morning.