Holi, Shab-e-Barat celebrations banned in Nagpur amid rising Covid-19 cases

The civic body in Maharashtra's Nagpur city on Friday issued a notification banning Holi celebrations and Shab-e-Barat processions in public and private places amid the rise in COVID-19 cases.

The state government has already imposed strict restrictions in Nagpur till March 31.

According to an order issued by the Nagpur Municipal Corporation, not more than five people will be permitted to gather at public places during the festivals on March 28 and 29.

Holi celebrations and Shab-e-Barat processions will not be permitted in private and public spaces, the notification stated.

The NMC has further stated that all private establishments, offices, shops, markets and libraries will remain shut on March 29.

Apart from this, all stand-alone grocery, vegetable, and meat shops will have to down their shutters after 1 pm on March 29, it was stated.

Nagpur district recorded a single-day spike of 3,579 COVID-19 cases and 47 deaths on Thursday, an official said.

The tally of infections in the district has now reached 2,07,067, while the toll has risen to 4,784, the official said.

As many as 1,67,464 patients have recovered from the infection so far, he said, adding that the district is now left with 34,819 active cases.

With the addition of 16,064 swab samples tested on Thursday, the total number of tests conducted in the district has reached 15,41,183.