The Nagaland government has decided to impose a complete lockdown from May 14. The decision was taken after a meeting of the high-powered committee held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio. The state government concerned over the rising cases of coronavirus decided to go into full lockdown from 6 pm on May 14 to May 21.
Mmhonlumo Kikon, spokesperson for COVID-19 taskforce said existing restrictions will continue till the lockdown is in place. The government will soon issue a new set of standard operating procedures (SOPs) to be followed during the lockdown on Tuesday.
The decision comes in view of the recent surge in cases, in Kohima and Dimapur, with the latter reporting the highest number of active cases 1,633 (as of May 7).
Here is the list of things to be exempted during the lockdown:
1. Essential services, including agricultural activities, will be exempted from the full lockdown.
2. Government departments will also continue to function with a core team of department heads.
3. Construction activities may be permitted but the contractor and firms will be responsible for ensuring adherence to all SOPs for the workers
4. The Health Department will pursue aggressive testing, utilizing the testing capacity of the COVID-19 laboratories.
The Nagaland government had on May 3 announced containment zones in Kohima and Dimapur from 7 pm on May 5 till 7 pm on May 12. But the cases are still on a rise. Nagaland had 15,004 positive cases by May 5, the cases have gone up to 16,283 by May 10. The death toll stands at 150.
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