Karnataka unlock: Pubs to reopen, cinema halls, auditoriums to operate with 100% capacity, check full SOPs here

Students of standard 6 to 12 can attend classes with full strength in districts with less than 1 per cent positivity rate in Karnataka.

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New Delhi: The Karnataka government on Friday (September 24) relaxed COVID-19 curbs and allowed cinema halls, auditoriums to reopen with full capacity from October 1. 

Among other relaxations, pubs can resume operations from October 3. While students of standard 6 to 12 can attend classes with full strength in districts with less than 1 per cent positivity rate. 

Night curfew will continue to be in effect from 10 pm to 5 am from September 25.

Pubs permitted to operate from Oct 3. Classes from 6th to 12th std permitted to operate for 5 days a week with full strength in districts with positivity rate less than 1%. Strict surveillance at border posts in districts adjoining Kerala & Maharashtra to continue: Karnataka govt — ANI (@ANI) September 24, 2021

The state government has also ordered officials to maintain strict surveillance at border posts in districts adjoining Kerala and Maharashtra. 

The state government had reopened schools for classes 9 to 12 on August 23. Earlier, students of classes 6-8 were allowed to attend schools on alternate days from September 6 in areas where the test positivity rate was below two per cent. 

Karnataka logged 789 new coronavirus cases and 23 fatalities, pushing the caseload to 29,71,833 and death toll to 37,706, as per health department on Friday. The active cases in the state currently stand at 13,306. The positivity rate on Friday was recorded at 0.58 per cent and case fatality rate (CFR) was at 2.91 per cent.

Meanwhile, replying to a debate on COVID-19 second wave in the assembly, Health Minister K Sudhakar said that the state government has "best managed" the COVID-19 pandemic, and opposition Congress which was in power for long, is to be blamed for any deaths due to lack of medical facilities like oxygen. "The opposition has targeted and criticised the government on its COVID management, but they are not ready to listen to my reply. People of the state are watching. They are indulging in hit and run politics, they don't care for the people," he said. 

The BJP minister alleged that Congress has no commitment or responsibility to fight against COVID, and only wants to indulge in politics.

(With agency input)