Haryana bans unvaccinated people from public places starting today
The Haryana government has banned people who are not vaccinated against the coronavirus from entering public places. The rule kicks in from Saturday, January 1—New Year's Day—and also applies to people who have received only a single dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. State officials say the new rule will encourage more people to take the COVID-19 jab.
- Several states and union territories including Punjab, Gujarat, and Chandigarh have banned entry to public places for unvaccinated people.
- The fresh curb in Haryana has been introduced as the state sees a surge in its daily COVID-19 cases, a situation similar to that in several other states.
- Further, it has also reported dozens of cases of the new Omicron variant of coronavirus.
The order was announced by the Haryana government last month. Under the rule, only those fully vaccinated will be allowed entry to offices, restaurants, bars, and wine shops. It also extends to local markets, malls, shopping complexes, banks, hotels, and religious places, among other such establishments. A night curfew from 11 pm to 5 am is already in place across the state.
On Friday, Haryana registered 427 new coronavirus cases over the past 24-hour period. The total number of infections in the past five days crossed 1,150. The state has also recorded 37 cases of the Omicron variant. Twenty-five of those patients have recovered or been discharged, according to official data. Just over 60% of the eligible population in Haryana is fully vaccinated.
Meanwhile, India on Saturday reported 22,775 fresh coronavirus infections over the past 24 hours—a massive jump of 35% from Friday's count of 16,764. Further, the country's tally of Omicron cases has climbed to 1,431. The daily test positivity rate has touched 2.05%. Separately, more than 145 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered across India so far.
