India extends COVID-19 restrictions till March end

India’s Ministry of Home Affairs on Friday extended the prevailing restrictions for surveillance, containment and caution against the spread of COVID-19 till the end of March. The restrictions were to have expired at midnight on Feb.28.

"There is need to maintain surveillance, containment and caution so as to fully overcome the pandemic. States and Union Territories have also been advised to speed up the vaccination of the target population so as to break the chain of transmission and overcome the pandemic," the ministry’s guidelines for the coming month said.

Civic authority marshals fine a motorcyclist for not wearing a face mask in public at Dharavi in Mumbai. AFP

Containment zones, which are areas with a high COVID-19 infection rate, must continue to be demarcated carefully and prescribed containment measures are to be strictly followed within these zones.

"COVID-19-appropriate behaviour must be promoted and enforced and the Standard Operating Procedures prescribed in respect of various permitted activities must be followed scrupulously," the ministry warned..

WAM