High Court orders Covid curbs in 5 UP cities, suspends all public religious activities there

April 19: In view of the worsening COVID-19 situation, the Allahabad High Court on Monday directed the Uttar Pradesh (UP) government to impose strict Covid curbs in five cities- Lucknow, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Kanpur and Gorakhpur. The order shall come into force from tonight till 26 April. The order was passed by a bench of justices Siddhartha Varma and Ajit Kumar. It noted the recent Covid-19 surge in these cities has ‘virtually incapacitated’ Uttar Pradesh’s entire medical infrastructure. The court has allowed essential services like grocery stores and pharmacies with less than three staff members to open.

According to the high court order, financial institutions, medical and health services, industrial and scientific establishments, essential services including municipal functions and public transport will be exempted.