Updated: November 19, 2020 10:56:09 pm
Gujarat reported 1,281 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, bringing the state’s bill to nearly 1.92 lakh. (Express Photo by Nirmal Harindran)
The Gujarat government imposed a full weekend curfew on November 20-23 in Ahmedabad on Thursday in the wake of a spike in Covid-19 cases.
As of Friday at 9 pm, only the milk and medicine stores will be able to remain operational until Monday 6 am. The indefinite night curfew, from 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., will also be in effect from Friday onwards.
The decision was made at a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and attended by Chief Deputy Minister Nitin Patel and senior officials from the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC). It was also decided to add 1,300 more Covid beds to the existing capacity in the city’s public and private hospitals.
“Considering the current situation, the state government has decided to impose a curfew in Ahmedabad city from November 20 from 9:00 PM until 6:00 AM until the rate of infection in the city is under control, “said the additional chief secretary of forests and environment, Rajeev Kumar Gupta, who is the officer in charge of Covid 19 in the city of Ahmedabad, stated in a video message.
The state government also sanctioned 300 doctors and 300 medical students for the city of Ahmedabad.
To cope with the increasing demand for beds in private and government hospitals, the AMC has added 900 additional beds in the government-run hospitals and 400 beds in different private hospitals designated by Covid on Thursday.
With this, 1,300 beds are added to the existing 7,500, thus adding a total of 8,800 beds in public and private hospitals.
“400 additional beds are available for Ahmedabad patients at the Kidney Disease Institute and Research Center (IKDRC) and Gujarat Cancer Research Institute (GCRI) hospitals, both on the campus of Asarwa Civil Hospital, are 400 beds have been increased at Sola GMERS civil hospital on Thursday, ”Gupta said, assuring there is no shortage of Covid beds in Ahmedabad.
Also, for areas around Ahmedabad like Sabarmati, Chandkehda, Motera, an additional 100 beds are being reserved for Covid patients in Gandhinagar civil hospital.
AMC also stated that more than 2,600 beds remain vacant in private and government hospitals today. This includes 2,237 beds in government hospitals and 400 beds in private hospitals.
© The Indian Express (P) Ltd
.
