Night curfew relaxed in 36 cities of Gujarat; day time curbs to continue

This comes amid a significant drop in the new coronavirus cases in Gujarat

Considering a significant drop in the new coronavirus cases in Gujarat, the state government on Wednesday decided to relax the night curfew timings by an hour in 36 cities, while the day time restrictions will remain in place.

Chief Minister Vijay Rupani made the announcement regarding the revised curfew timings after a cabinet meeting in Gandhinagar.

From Friday, the night restrictions on people's movement will be effective from 9 pm to 6 am in 36 cities, the chief minister said.

Currently, the night curfew is being enforced from 8 pm to 6 am.

"Coronavirus cases are decreasing in Gujarat. From nearly 14,600 new cases, the highest daily peak registered on April 30, about 3,200 cases are currently emerging every day. Hence, we have decided to relax the night curfew. The curfew will now be from 9 pm to 6 am," Rupani said.

A notification in this regard will be issued on Thursday, he said.

The night curfew is currently in place in 36 cities, including Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot.

The chief minister also said there will not be any change in the day time restrictions currently in place in these cities.

He also said the state government is alert about the possibility of a third wave of COVID-19 and a detailed action plan to deal with it will be announced soon.

On Tuesday, Gujarat reported 3,255 new COVID-19 cases and 44 fatalities, raising the infection tally to 7,94,912 and the death toll to 9,665, as per official data.

On April 30, Gujarat reported 14,605 new coronavirus cases, the highest in the state so far.