The department of health and family welfare has described metropolitan cities, Bengaluru in particular to be the epicentres of the impending third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. On Tuesday alone, as many as 3,048 new cases and 147 cases of the highly contagious Omicron variant were reported. 

 

R Ashoka, revenue minister of Karnataka said that separate rules have been drafted for Bengaluru and the rest of the state. “No in-person classes will be held in any of the schools, colleges or higher educational institutions. Exceptions have been made only for classes 10 to 12 where it is optional. Medical, paramedical and nursing colleges will continue to function as usual,” he announced. 

 

He also explained that the doubling of cases, like in several other states has begun in Karnataka as well. “Over the past two to three days, cases have grown threefold. The positivity rate is over 2.5 percent currently. We are predicting that these numbers will scale up to 10,000 in the next five days,” said Ashoka. Bengaluru accounts for 85% of the total active cases in the state. 

 

The state government has also imposed a weekend curfew (from 10 pm on Friday to 5 am on Monday) to curb any activities and social gatherings. Only essential commodities such as milk, provisions and medical facilities will remain open. The existing night curfews from 10 pm to 5 am will continue to remain. Gyms and swimming pools will operate at 50% occupancy. The number of people at marriages has been restricted to 200 for outdoor weddings and 100 if held in closed spaces.