Goa govt imposes 15-day lockdown from May 9 amid Covid-19 spike

Sawant said all the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs have been asked to set up a war room in their constituencies to coordinate efforts to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic.

Goa government on Friday imposed a 15-day lockdown starting from May 9 at 9am. Curfew like restrictions will be imposed in the state. However, essentials will be available between 7am and 1pm while takeaway will be allowed from 7am to 7pm.

Earlier in the day, Sawant had hinted at a lockdown in the state to curb the spread of coronavirus disease (Covid-19). (Photo by Sumit Sourav on Unsplash)

Earlier in the day, Sawant had hinted at a lockdown in the state to curb the spread of coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

Sawant said all the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs have been asked to set up a war room in their constituencies to coordinate efforts to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic. "The MLAs will also have to start round-the-clock call centres which will be in touch with Covid-19 patients," he added.

Goa is currently under stringent Covid-19-related lockdown, which includes closure of non-essential shops.

The restrictions come at a time when Goa is battling a high positivity rate -- 51.65% with 3,496 of the 6,769 tests conducted emerging positive. Sawant has said that he expects the positivity rate to come down over the next 10 days as the effects of the state ramping up testing are yet to be seen.

Goa on Thursday reported 3,869 fresh Covid-19 cases that took the infection count to 1,08,267, an official from the health department said. The death toll mounted to 1,501 after 58 patients died of the infection. There are now 29,752 active cases. The case tally stands at 1,08,267.