Assam declares total lockdown in 7 districts from tomorrow; what’s allowed and what’s not

The Assam government has announced a total lockdown in seven districts due to the rising number of cases of COVID-19 in the state. The seven districts where lockdown has been imposed are Goalpara, Golaghat, Jorhat, Lakhimpur, Sonitpur, Biswanath, and Morigaon.Also, the strict total lockdown will come into effect from tomorrow, 7 July (Wednesday) and will be in place till further notice. The Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) made the announcement through a press release, stating that the decision to impose a total lockdown in these seven districts has been taken due to the rise in positive cases.As per the notice, there will be a round-the-clock curfew in these selected districts as all commercial setups, restaurants and shops will remain shut.Here's what is allowed and what’s not allowed during the lockdown:- There will be a round-the-clock curfew in these 7 districts and all commercial setups, restaurants and shops will remain shut- The whole area of these seven districts will be treated as containment zones- In these seven districts, all offices, commercial establishments, and grocery stores will remain shut. While shops selling fruits, vegetables, dairy products, and animal fodder along with restaurants and other eateries, showrooms, cold storages and warehouses will also remain closed until further notice- There will be a complete ban on public and private transport but the movement of goods will be allowed in the state. Furthermore, there will also be a ban on inter-district travel- Amid these days, wearing of face masks will be compulsory for everyone especially in public places, and no gatherings or social meetings will be allowed during this time- In districts like Dibrugarh, Sivasagar, Kokrajhar among others, where the positivity rate is moderate, the curfew will be in force from 2 pm to 5 am- In districts that are showing improvement in positivity rate, the curfew will be in force from 5 pm to 5 am. These districts include Kamrup(M), Majuli, Bongaigaon, Chirang, Udalguri, South Salman, West Karbi Anglong, Dima Hasao, Dhubri, Charaideo and HailakandiAssam’s daily positive cases rose to 5,19,834 on Monday, 5 July as 2,640 more people tested positive for the infection, while 31 people died due to the virus. This has pushed the state's coronavirus death toll to 4,683 as per a health bulletin.So far, the Golaghat district registered the highest number of new infections that were 333, followed by Sonitpur with 233, Kamrup Metropolitan with 197, and Jorhat with 151 cases.