Guwahati: In view of the New Year celebrations, the Assam government on Saturday issued new instructions related to COVID-19 and said that there will be no night curfew in the state on December 31. The government urged all people to maintain COVID appropriate behavior including wearing masks and said that those who do not do so will be punished and fined.
State Health Minister Keshav Mahanta said, “The amended instructions will be applicable in the entire state from 6 am on December 26 till further orders.” He said that as per the new standard operating procedure (SOP), the night curfew will be in force from 11.30 pm to 6 am, though it will not be applicable on the night of December 31.
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Mahant said that for Omicron specific regulation, the District Magistrate, Superintendent of Police and other concerned officers will be responsible for ensuring COVID appropriate behavior at all public places. It has been said in the guidelines that all workplaces, business and business establishments will remain open till 10.30 pm.
As per the SOP, for meetings or gatherings in open spaces, the District Disaster Management Authority will specify the number based on the COVID situation in that district, while in closed spaces, gatherings of up to 50 per cent of the seating capacity will be allowed.
The guidelines state that reputable religious places can allow 60 fully vaccinated people per hour, while for other religious places the number of devotees or visitors is limited to 40 per hour. Apart from this, cinema halls will continue to run with 50 percent capacity.
The Minister said that the District Magistrate and the Superintendent of Police would ensure that the people strictly follow the instructions and they would also deploy adequate number of teams for surveillance. Action can be taken against any person violating these measures as per the Disaster Management Act, 2005 and other legal provisions.
In addition, anyone not wearing a mask or spitting in public places will be fined Rs 1,000. Mahant urged the people to follow the specified rules and take COVID appropriate behavior to contain the spread of the virus.(Agency)