Himachal Government has decided that all the educational institutions in the State would remain closed till May 10.

All the temples would also remain closed for devotees till May 10 and community feast (Dham) during marriages and other celebrations has been completely banned in the state.

These decisions were taken during n a high level meeting held here under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur to review the COVID-19 situation in the state.

The Chief Minister said that sharp increase in COVID-19 cases in the state is a matter of concern.

The government has decided to restrict social gatherings during marriages etc. upto 20 persons. All the government offices would have five days week and 50 percent of total employees of Class-III and Class-IV categories would be ensured in the government offices till May 10, he said.

Thakur said that steps would be taken to increase bed capacity particularly in heavy load districts such as Kangra, Mandi, Shimla, Solan, Una, Sirmaur etc. Testing capacity would be enhanced in the state and the time for getting test report would be reduced.

An effective mechanism would be evolved to check and regulate entry of people visiting the state from other parts of the country, he said.

The Chief Minister further said that in order to ensure optimum utilization and mobilization of resources, the State Government has constituted four committees. Logistic Committee headed by Arindam Chaudhary, Managing Director, HP State Electronic Development Corporation  would monitor availability of oxygen and plan for creation of additional bed capacity whereas COVID-19 patients or ambulance management committee headed by Dr. Rajesh Thakur, SSO, NHM would ensure creation of triage space at all facilities, ensure proper inter district movement of patients etc.

He said that the Corporate Social Responsibility Coordination orContribution Committee headed by Abid Hussain, Director Urban Development would mobile corporate and CSR contributions to HP SDMA Covid-19 Fund and also coordinate with all prospective donors and industrial associations. Media /IEC Committee has also been constituted headed by Dr. Nipun Jindal, Managing Director NHM to disseminate up to date data and correct information to media besides eliminate information gap at all levels, he added.

33 ambulances made available to facilitate COVID patients

The Health Department has made available 33 additional ambulances to facilitate COVID patients. 13 out of 108 ambulance service and 20 out of 102 ambulance service have been made available for COVID patients, said Mission Director, National Health Mission, Nipun Jindal.

He said that about 123 COVID dedicated ambulances are facilitating COVID patients in the state.

More restrictions on functions imposed in Shimla

Following violations of COVID safety protocols in marriages in Shimla, the State Government has banned use of DJ in marriages and has allowed marriage function for one day only.

Maximum of 20 persons shall be allowed to attend the marriage and function will not extend beyond one day. There will be total ban on community kitchen (Dham) and use of DJ. The organizers will seek permission from concerned SDM for special hours for the function, stated an order issued by District Disaster Management Authority.

HP urges Centre to ensure adequate oxygen supply

The Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur has urged the Central Government to provide 5000 D-Type oxygen cylinders and 3000 B-Type oxygen to ensure that there is no dearth of oxygen in the state.

Thakur said the State Government is making efforts to ensure that there is adequate supply of medical oxygen and availability of beds in hospitals for COVID-19 patients.