Chandigarh, August 20: Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Thursday ordered a series of emergency measure amid rising coronavirus cases in the state. The Punjab government extended weekend lockdown with daily night curfew from 7 pm to 5 am in all the 167 cities and towns of the state. The night curfew will come into force from tomorrow. Punjab Imposes More Restrictions in Jalandhar, Ludhiana And Patiala From Today Amid Surge in COVID-19 Cases; Check Timings For Restaurants, Shopping Malls & Liquor Shops.

Captain Singh also ordered a total ban on all gatherings except weddings and funerals across the state till August 31. According to a statement by Punjab CMO, government and private offices will work at 50 percent capacity till the end of this month.

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Meanwhile, a total of 27.7 percent of people in these containment zones are found to be positive for Covid antibodies, indicating that they have already been infected and recovered from the COVID-19., said the state health ministry. Punjab witnessed a sharp rise in coronavirus cases in the past few days.

Till now, almost 37,000 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the state. More than 900 people also succumbed to the lethal virus in Punjab. Ludhiana is the worst-hit district of the state with over 8,000 people have been diagnosed with coronavirus until now. A total of 271 people also lost their lives in this district of Punjab.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 20, 2020 06:42 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).