Night curfew imposed in Delhi from today. Here's what's allowed, what's not

The night curfew, imposed with immediate effect in Delhi, has been enforced to ensure that crowds gathered at public places, including all restaurants, pubs, bars, nightclubs, and party venues, are dispersed by 10pm.

A night curfew was imposed in Delhi by the Arvind Kejriwal-led government from Tuesday till April 30 to curb the worsening coronavirus disease (Covid-19) crisis in the national capital. The night curfew will remain in effect from 10pm to 5am and would essentially mean gatherings at markets, restaurants, pubs, bars, nightclubs, party venues and other public places would have to disperse by 10pm every night, senior government officials familiar with the development said.

In the seven-hour window between 10pm to 5am during the night curfew in Delhi, only essential services will be allowed to operate. (File Photo)

In the wake of the night curfew in Delhi, here's what will remain open and what won’t post 10pm in the national capital till April 30:

Markets, pubs, bars, restaurants in Delhi to close by 10pm

The night curfew, imposed with immediate effect in Delhi, has been enforced to ensure that crowds gathered at public places, including all restaurants, pubs, bars, nightclubs, and party venues, are dispersed by 10pm. This will also be applicable to guests gathered at social occasions such as wedding halls, laws, and banquet halls. Moreover, all shopping zones, arcades and market complexes in Delhi, which remain open after the evening, will have to shut down by 10pm.

Watch: Night curfew imposed in Delhi till April 30 | All you need to know

Speaking on the government's decision to impose the night curfew, a senior official, on the condition of anonymity, informed HT that citizens in Delhi had been found to be brazenly flouting Covid-19-related protocols in public places, despite the government's repeated appeals to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Only essential services allowed from 10pm to 5am

In the seven-hour window between 10pm to 5am during the night curfew in Delhi, only essential services will be allowed to operate. Essential services include emergency medical and healthcare-related facilities, such as hospitals, nursing homes, diagnostic centres, medicinal clinics, pharmacies and other associated services. Pharmaceutical companies and medical insurance offices shall also remain open.

During the night curfew, essential nutriment facilities in Delhi such as groceries, dairies, shops selling fruits and vegetables, bakeries, and confectionaries shall also remain open. However, these establishments will be required to ensure Covid-19 appropriate behaviour in their premises, as per official protocols.

Emergency services personnel, such as medical professionals, healthcare workers, police, civil defence, fire and emergency services personnel, electricity, water and sanitation workers will be allowed to continue on with their services, given they produce valid identification (ID) cards.

Banks, insurance offices, ATMs, print and electronic media, internet, broadcasting and cable-related services shall be allowed to function. No restrictions will be imposed on persons who are going in for Covid-19 vaccination.

The persons associated with the aforementioned activities shall, however, be required to produce an 'e-pass' to facilitate movement. The 'e-pass' can be produced as either a hard or a soft copy and can be obtained by applying on the Delhi government's official website.

Delhi Metro, buses, autos, taxis, and other forms of public transport to only allow essential services

According to a Delhi government order, public transport shall ply within its stipulated time and only allow movement of essential services, as described above. Commuters arriving at the airports, railway stations, and inter-state bus terminals will be allowed to travel, given they produce valid tickets.

Delhi recorded 3,548 new Covid-19 cases on Monday. With this, total cases in the national capital reached 6,79,962, including 14,589 active cases. 15 new fatalities also pushed the coronavirus death toll to 11,096, according to the Delhi health department. The case positivity rate in the national capital has also risen to 5.54% amid a massive surge in Covid-19 cases in the last few weeks.