Pune, July 10: Amid the soaring COVID-19 cases, a complete lockdown will be imposed in Pune and neighbouring twin-city Pimpri-Chinchwad and some parts of Rural Pune. The lockdown will be for 10 days from July 13 to July 23. Pune Divisional Commissioner Deepak Mhaisekar said that all shops will remain closed in the city except those offering essential services like dairy, medical stores and hospitals.

"22 villages have been identified in rural parts of Pune district where this lockdown will be implemented. Apart from Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad area, containment zones these villages will be added," Mhaisekar said. Pune Civic Body Set to Start Rapid Antigen Tests for Diagnosis of COVID-19.

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There will be two phases of the lockdown, first between July 13 to 18 when only medical shops, dairies, and hospitals will remain open. Sale of newspapers will also be allowed, said Shekhar Gaikwad, Commissioner, Pune Municipal Commission. In the second phase, between 18 July to 23 July, medical stores, dairies, hospitals and essential services will be allowed to remain open.

The novel coronavirus cases in Pune is nearing 35,000-mark, while the death toll is close to 1,000-mark. Meanwhile, the city reported the highest single-day spike of 1,006 new COVID-19 cases since on Thursday.

The death toll has reached 786, according to a Thursday evening update. In Pimpri-Chinchwad, 6,601 COVID-19 cases have been reported, while the death toll is 86. Meanwhile in Maharashtra, the total infection cases have surged to 2,30,599.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 10, 2020 05:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).