Deserted roads and eerie silence: Bengal grapples with renewed lockdown

Several parts of West Bengal wore a deserted look on Saturday as the state entered third day of the seven-day lockdown imposed in containment zones to curb rising covid-19 cases. (Express photo: Shashi Ghosh)

The containment zones, spread across 20 of the state''s 23 districts, went into total lockdown from 5 pm on Thursday. (Express photo: Shashi Ghosh)

Private and public vehicles remained off the roads in these areas while all business establishments, barring those dealing with essential commodities, stayed shut. (Express photo: Shashi Ghosh)

Barricades were seen outside containment zones to restrict movement. Police patrol vehicles and those associated with emergency services were the only ones spotted on roads. (Express photo: Shashi Ghosh)

On Friday, the state had reported a record 1,198 cases, and 26 deaths as it continued to reel from a continued upswing in fatalities and infections. (Express photo: Shashi Ghosh)

While infections in the state have surged, the rise in recoveries, seen mid-June, has stalled. (Express photo: Shashi Ghosh)

This month, the discharge rate in Bengal has been 61.02 per cent, almost three percentage points less than the overall recovery rate of 63.99 per cent. (Express photo: Shashi Ghosh)

According to the government data, almost 82 per cent of the infections and 90 per cent of the fatalities this month have been reported from Kolkata, its adjoining districts, and Hooghly. (Express photo: Shashi Ghosh)

Infections, also continued to climb in Malda and Darjeeling in North Bengal on Friday as the two districts reported a combined 77 cases. (Express photo: Shashi Ghosh)