Complete lockdown across Bengal for 2 days a week, home secretary says community transmission has started in some areas

With 4,476 new cases reported in just two days and the COVID-19 situation looking dismal, the West Bengal government on Monday decided to impose strict lockdown across the state for two days a week. State home secretary Alapan Bandopadhyay said that community transmission has started in some areas, and to break this chain, some measures are being taken, including imposing a strict lockdown two days a week across the state.

For the current week, the lockdown will be implemented on Thursday and Saturday. The days in the coming week will be announced after a meeting on Monday. However, for people to make preparations in advance, Wednesday will be the first lockdown day in the coming week. The other day of the week will be announced on Monday, Bandopadhyay said. “We are announcing the days till July 29 so that people can make arrangements in advance,” he said.

The lockdown will be implemented across the state, and not just in the containment zones where it is on currently. All shops, establishments, offices, transport etc. will remain closed across West Bengal.

Only July 19, there were 2,278 new cases reported on a single day, on July 18, the number of new cases reported was 2,198, and on July 17, there were 1,894 new cases in West Bengal. The discharge rate of patients in the state has dropped to 58.56 per cent now.