Kolkata, July 20: A two-day complete lockdown per week will be imposed in West Bengal, beginning from this week. The announcement was made on Monday by the state government, which also contended that community transmission has begun in some "pockets". The shutdown this week will come into effect on Thursday and Saturday.

Under the total lockdown, all shops selling non-essential items will remain shut. Public movement would be severely curtailed and only allowed if necessitated. Essential services will be exempted for few hours. The full guidelines are expected to be released by the government. India's COVID-19 Fatality Rate Drops to 2.46%, Recovery Rate Inches Closer to 63%.

"There'll be a 2-day complete lockdown every week from this week. In current week, on Thursday and Saturday the state government imposes, in addition to running broad based containment zone approach, a complete lockdown all over the state," West Bengal Home Secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay said.

'Community Transmission' Has Begun

"COVID-19 is spreading and increasingly it is being considered that it is spreading in community. After discussion with scientists and experts, the idea is being drawn that there are transmission in some groups," Bandopadhyay added.

Apart from the complete lockdown on two days, the restrictions in areas designated as containment zones will continue to remain in effect in all days. The relaxations would be made only after the locality is delisted from the list of COVID-19 hotspots. At present, the government has notified a total of 739 containment zones.

Across Bengal, more than 40,000 cases of COVID-19 have been reported so far. The biggest single-day spike was recorded on Saturday, with 2,198 cases being recorded in the preceding 24 hours. Nationwide, the tally of coronavirus cases has breached the 11.18 lakh mark.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 20, 2020 05:41 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).