With Punjab witnessing a second wave of novel coronavirus infections, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh Thursday extended by two hours the night curfew in the state's nine worst-affected districts and warned that he won't “go easy on people” if they don't follow Covid appropriate behaviour. "I won't be easy on the people. People may not like it, but it's my duty," Amarinder said. Expressing hope that the daily case load won’t cross 3000, as projected by some experts, he urged people of the state to cooperate with authorities and adhere to the restrictions. “For God’s sake, save the lives of Punjabis,” he urged citizens. In the nine worst affected districts, the night curfew will now be in place from 9 pm to 5 am, instead of 11 pm to 5 am. The districts, including,Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Patiala, Mohali, Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala and Ropar, have been reporting more than 100 cases everyday. The CM said that the Covid situation in the state was critical and he was going to be tough. Several stringent measures, including restrictions on gatherings, will be announced after discussions with the state government's expert Covid team over the next couple of days, the chief minister said while addressing a press conference to mark the completion of four years of his government. "Whether these will include restrictions on political gatherings is also something that will be decided as per the medical expert team's advice," he added. With 283 Covid patients in high-dependency units (on Oxygen) and another 27 on ventilators, the situation is dangerous, the CM said, urging people to get themselves tested even if they feel slightly unwell. “The problem is people are going to hospitals too late,” he said, while appealed to all to wear masks and maintain social distance, warning that penalties may also be enhanced if required. Amarinder hoped the Centre would accept his suggestion on opening up the vaccination to younger people in the worst hit areas and also to all those in public dealing. To a question on his Himachal Pradesh counterpart's statement seeking curbs on people coming in from Punjab for pilgrimage and religious purposes, Amarinder said he was not in favour of such restrictions. “I am against stopping movement of people for religious purposes. But the Covid problem needs to be controlled. I have read about HP CM’s demand in newspapers only. I will see what is to be done once I receive the letter from him,” he added. The CM also wished speedy recovery to SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal, who has tested positive for Covid and is undergoing treatment at Medanta Hospital, Gurgaon. “My ministers are down (with Covid), my finance minister is down and so are many of my officials and MLAs,” he said, wishing them recovery.
