AHMEDABAD: The civic body in Gujarat's Ahmedabad city on Wednesday announced that shops selling essentials in 10 containment zones will be allowed to operate between 8 am and 1 pm starting Friday.
In a release issued on Wednesday, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation said home delivery and wholesale vegetable and fruit markets will not be allowed in the containment zones.
However, shops selling essentials can operate in these areas between 8 am and 1 pm, only if shop owners and staff carry "health screening cards" issued by the civic body with seven-day validity, the AMC statement read.
Shopkeepers will have to wear masks, gloves, use sanitisers, follow social distancing norms and keep a separate tray for money to avoid direct contact with customers, it said.
Residents of these containment zones will be allowed to come out of their homes between 8 am and 1 pm only to buy essentials and no one will be permitted to exit these areas, it said.
The areas under containment zones include Khadia, Jamalpur, Shahpur, Dariapur, Danilimda, Baherampura, Asarwa, Gomtipur, Saraspur and Maninagar.
The AMC has been issuing health cards to grocery shop owners, vegetable and milk vendors in the city after screening them for coronavirus.
The number of coronavirus cases in Gujarat rose to 9,268 with 364 new cases being detected on Wednesday, 292 in Ahmedabad district alone, a health official said.
The death toll due to the pandemic increased to 566 with 29 patients dying, Principal Secretary (Health), Jayanti Ravi said.
Among 16 districts where new cases were found, Ahmedabad reported 292, Surat 23 and Vadodara 18.
The tally of coronavirus cases in Ahmedabad rose to 6,645.
In Surat and Vadodara, it rose to 967 and 592, respectively.
Again, out of 29 deaths, Ahmedabad accounted for 25.
Three patients died in Surat and one in Patan.
The number of COVID-19-related deaths in Ahmedabad thus rose to 446, and that in Surat to 43.
316 patients were also discharged upon recovery on Wednesday.
Ahmedabad reported the highest number of recovered patients at 238.
A total of 2,112 patients have been discharged from Ahmedabad hospitals.
39 patients are on a ventilator in the state, Ravi said.
As many as 1,22,297 samples were tested in the state till Wednesday, 2,760 in the last 24 hours, she said.
Amreli district recorded its first coronavirus case on Wednesday.
The pandemic, thus, has now spread to all 33 districts of Gujarat.
Ravi told reporters that drugs Ramdesivir and Interferon, which are being used for "WHO solidarity clinical trial" being conducted in Gujarat hospitals on coronavirus patients, have reached Ahmedabad.
"Patented drug Ramdesivir, and another drug Interferon, which will be used on coronavirus patients as part of WHO clinical trial, have reached Ahmedabad. These drugs are believed to be highly effective," she said.
Apart from Ahmedabad, Vadodara and Surat, the districts with high number of cases in Gujarat are Gandhinagar (142), Bhavnagar (100), Banaskantha (82), Anand (80), Aravalli (76), Mehsana (67), Rajkot (66), Botad (56).
Gujarat COVID-19 figures: Positive cases: 9,268, new cases: 364, deaths: 566, discharged: 3,562, active cases: 5,140; people tested so far: 1,22,297.