Haryana government issues new guidelines on public gatherings amid rising COVID-19 cases in the state

The Haryana government on Sunday issued fresh guidelines putting a ceiling on the number of people permitted to attend functions in open spaces and indoors, and at funerals in the wake of a surge in coronavirus cases in the state.

While at most 200 people would be allowed at events indoor, the crowd capacity outdoors has been put at 500. At funerals, a maximum of 50 people would be allowed to attend, the new guidelines stated.

Earlier, the limit on gatherings was implemented in Gurgaon and Faridabad.

Under the new standard operating procedure (SOPs), organisers of social, academic, sports, entertainment, cultural, religious and political gatherings must take permission from district magistrates, the state government stated.

The district magistrates will issue permission for the gatherings only after seeking necessary no-objection certificates from the departments concerned.

The new SOPs also permit action against violators after extensive checking under provisions of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, as well as under Sections 188 of the Indian Penal Code.

While urging the people of the state to religiously follow the COVID-19 guidelines, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said everyone should take precautionary measures to safeguard themselves from the infection.

The third wave of the coronavirus pandemic is raging in the state, he said in Karnal, adding every citizen should wear a mask, use sanitiser and maintain six-feet distance.

Haryana had reported 10 COVID-19 fatalities on Saturday taking the death toll to 3,184. The coronavirus case tally rose to 2,96,229 with 1,959 fresh instances of the infection.

The districts which report a big spike in cases included Gurgaon (606), Karnal (274), Faridabad (138), Ambala (138) and Kurukshetra (124). The state now has 11,787 active cases.


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