In view of the rising Omicron cases in Mumbai, the Maharashtra government issued a notification on Friday, extending restrictions in Mumbai till January 15.
As per the restrictions under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), the Mumbai Police has prohibited citizens from visiting beaches, open grounds, sea faces, promenades, gardens, parks, or similar public places, from 5pm to 5am.
The state government has also capped the attendance in open or closed spaces at 50 people. Earlier, not more than 100 persons in enclosed spaces, and 250 persons in open spaces, were permitted to attend wedding functions or social, cultural, political and religious gatherings.
The new directive also states only 20 people can attend funerals and cremations.
Any person contravening the order shall be liable for punishment under Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code, as well as provisions of the Epidemic Diseases Act 1897, Pandemic Act, and the National Disaster Management Act 2005, and other legal provisions as applicable.
The positivity rate in Mumbai on Thursday surged to 8.48 per cent after 3,671 new Covid-19 cases were reported in the city.
Maharashtra reported 5,368 Covid-19 cases on Thursday, a sharp spike of 1,468 cases from Wednesday, propelling the state’s overall caseload to 66,70,754.
At present, there are 18,217 active cases in the state.
Maharashtra also recorded 198 new cases of the Omicron variant, of which 190 were in Mumbai alone, taking the tally in the state to 450.
