COVID-19 outbreak: 2-day total lockdown across West Bengal every week

"There will be a two-day complete lockdown every week," Home Secretary Bandyopadhyay was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

"In the current week, on Thursday and Saturday, the state government is imposing, in addition to running a broad-based containment zone approach, a complete lockdown all over the state," he added.

Meanwhile, Bandopadhyay also reportedly admitted that community transmission of the deadly COVID-19 has also been detected in some areas of West Bengal.

"COVID-19 is spreading and increasingly it is being considered that it is spreading in the community," he said.

"After discussion with scientists and experts, the idea is being drawn that there are transmission in some groups (sic)," the Home Secretary added.

The weekly lockdown announcement comes after West Bengal's COVID-19 tally crossed the 42,000-mark on Sunday.

The state witnessed its highest single-day spike of 2,278 cases on Sunday, pushing the total tally to 42,487 cases. The COVID-19 death toll in West Bengal also rose to 1,112 after the disease claimed 36 lives on the same day - the highest in a single day so far.

The West Bengal Home Department on Sunday announced that the containment zone-based lockdown strategy for curbing the COVID-19 spread in the state will be followed until July 31.

It also issued an advisory to West Bengal DGP Virendra Kumar, Kolkata Police Commissioner Anuj Sharma, all District Magistrates, and other concerned authorities for continuing the lockdown in broad-based containment zones according to the local situation.