Maha: Function halls under scanner amid rise in Covid-19 cases

In light of the rise in COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra, local authorities have been instructed to crackdown on function halls where the number of guests are beyond the permissible limits, an official said on Wednesday.

According to the police, as many as 50 guests are allowed to attend indoor events, while 200 can participate in outdoor functions.

Divisional commissioner Sunil Kendrekar said authorities in eight districts of Aurangabad division have been asked to reach out to function halls in the region to check if the number of guests are within the permissible limits.

If the number of people is found beyond limit, the administration will register an offence against the establishments, the official said.

"The administration should monitor function halls and check the number of persons present during functions. If the number is found beyond limit and COVID-19 guidelines are flouted, the administration will serve a notice and if the practise continues, an offence will be registered and the premises will be sealed," he said.

The divisional commissioner also asked local authorities to ramp up testing in Beed, Hingoli, Parbhani and Nanded districts.

As per the official data, with the addition of 120 fresh cases of COVID-19, the tally of infections in Aurangabad district reached 47,842 on Tuesday night.

At least 46,190 patients have recovered from the infection, while 1,245 have succumbed to it so far, an official said, adding that the district is now left with 407 active cases.