Kerala police chief issues new guidelines to curb pandemic spread
Now, you need prior appointment for bank transaction in Kerala and banks asked to give fixed time slots for customers in advance
As community transmission of COVID-19 has been confirmed in few areas in the state along with formation of several active disease spreading clusters in many districts, the Kerala government has stepped up measures to curb the disease spread.
State police Chief Lokanath Behera issued new set of guidelines on Thursday detailing the preventive measures. The DGP’s circular follows the state government’s recent decision to entrust major responsibilities of the pandemic control and prevention measures with the police.
As per the circular, the banks should give fixed time slots for customers in advance and the authorities should take necessary measures to avoid all kinds of gatherings within bank premises.
Shops and other commercial establishments have been asked to take precautionary measures like ensuring social distancing and personal hygiene.
Only six persons should be allowed in supermarkets with an area of 100 square feet at a time while 12 customers can enter the shop if the ship is big with more than 200 square feet. Shop owners have been asked to employ very few number of staff workers for duty while customers should limit the purchasing time.
It is the responsibility of police sub inspectors to ensure that commercial establishments are strictly complying with the guidelines. Top police officials from the rank of IG will oversee the preventive measures and take strict action against violators as per the Epidemic Diseases Act.
The state government had earlier issued a set of public guidelines limiting the number of persons attending functions like marriages and death ceremonies. As per the earlier circular, 25 persons were allowed at a time in commercial establishments or big shops.
The state has been recording more than 1000 new cases per day for the last few days and the total number of cases stands at 29151. The number of active cases is 11495.As many as 1195 new cases were reported on Wednesday. The death toll in the state is 94.
Number of patients is on fast increase in cities like Kochi where the entire west Kochi area is demarcated as containment zone.