Goa limits gatherings as cases rise
On Friday, the test positivity rate in Goa was 21.72 percent as the number of active cases in the state climbed to 5,931. Of the 1,432 cases that were new, 14 patients were hospitalised while 418 were isolated at home.
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A crowded at Mapusa Market on the eve of Christmas festival, North Goa, Friday, Dec. 24, 2021. (PTI Photo)All public meetings and gatherings in Goa will now be limited to 50 per cent capacity for indoor venues and up to 100 people in outdoor venues, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant announced on Friday as the coastal state – which goes to the elections soon – recorded a steep rise in Covid-19 cases.
On Friday, the test positivity rate in Goa was 21.72 percent, with the state adding 1,432 new cases to its count of Covid-19 cases. Test-positivity rate is the proportion of samples tested for Covid-19 that returned positive. On Friday, there were 5,931 active cases in the state, according to bulletin issued by the state Directorate of Health Services.
Since the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020, the state has reported 1,86,189 infections and 3,530 deaths.
The existing restrictions will continue till January 26 after which they will be reviewed, Sawant said.
“We have issued an additional circular under the Epidemic Act, 1987 and we are adding that the public gatherings should be limited to 50 per cent for auditoriums and a maximum of 100 people for open places. Any gathering, public meeting in open places cannot have more than 100 people,” he said.
Presently, schools and colleges are closed for physical classes, and restaurants, bars and eateries in Goa can only allow people who are fully vaccinated or are carrying a negative Covid-19 test report. The state has also restricted the operation of casinos, cinema halls, auditoriums, community halls, river cruises, water parks and entertainment parks to 50 per cent of their capacity.
“We have seen the spread is faster in crowded places and these restrictions are to control the spread. We have instructed all departments not to let crowds gather so that we can control the positivity rate,” the Chief Minister said in Porvorim on Friday.
On Thursday, the BJP’s Goa unit said the party had postponed all rallies and will campaign only door-to-door in view of the surge in Covid-19 infections in the state.
Goa is among the five states expected to go to polls next month.
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