Tamil Nadu extends lockdown till July 19; restaurants can stay open till 9 pm

Chennai: Lockdown in Tamil Nadu has been extended till July 19. The state government has permitted shops can open till 9 pm, and restaurants can now function with 50 per cent capacity.

Except for Puducherry, inter-state public transport will not be allowed, and international air travel except the ones permitted by the Union home ministry will continue to remain prohibited. 

Activities that will continue to be prohibited are social, political, entertainment, sports and cultural events and international air travel except the ones permitted by the Union government.

Schools, colleges, cinema halls, theatres, liquor bars, swimming pools and zoological parks will remain closed.

On Friday, the state had registered 3,039 new cases of COVID-19 and 69 deaths taking the total number of cases to 25.13 lakh and cumulative death toll to 33,322. According to a report by TOI, after discharging 3,411 cases from the state registry, the state had 33,224 patients under treatment.

Scientists and researchers have predicted a third wave of COVID-19 in mid-August 2021.

While COVID-19 cases continue to witness a downward trend, a slight increase in the positivity rate has been reported.

India logged 42,766 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally to 3,07,95,716, while the active cases have declined to 4,55,033.

According to the Union Health Ministry data, the death toll has climbed to 4,07,145, with 1,206 fresh fatalities.

The active cases comprise 1.48 per cent of the total infections, and the national COVID-19 recovery rate stands at 97.20 per cent; the data updated at 8 am showed, reported PTI.

To tackle the possible third wave, the Union government is ramping up oxygen production and critical supply infrastructure.

The Indian government has already declared Delta plus a “variant of concern”.

In June, Tamil Nadu had registered its first death due to the Delta plus variant of COVID-19 after a patient from Madurai died due to the infection.

The Delta Plus variant has been found in 174 districts across 35 states, with districts in Maharashtra, Delhi, Punjab, Telangana, West Bengal and Gujarat reporting the highest number of cases.