THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: From Thursday, to step out for routine work, a Kerala resident needs either a vaccination certificate, RT-PCR negative report or a test result proving Covid infection in the past, according to the latest Covid guidelines issued by the state government. The new guidelines allow functioning of shops, other establishments, offices and banks for six days a week but restrict entry to those who have acquired a certain level of immunity against the viral disease.
“Only persons who have taken at least one dose of Covid vaccine before two weeks, or who are in possession of RT-PCR negative certificate taken 72 hours before or who is in possession of Covid positive results more than a month old will be allowed inside (workers/visitors) in shops, markets, banks, public and private offices, financial institutions, factories, industrial establishments, tourist spaces and other establishments,” says the fourth clause of the guidelines issued by Chief Secretary V P Joy on Wednesday.
This part of the guidelines is in deviation of the statement made by Health Minister Veena George in the assembly earlier in the day when she said such a criterion was “desirable”, clearly hinting that it is not mandatory.
The high-level meeting convened by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday had decided to include this clause as an advisory to the people so that they may be reminded of the gravity of the prevailing situation.
However, a last-minute change was made even by keeping the health minister in the dark to sound it like a compulsory clause. With the police empowered to slap fines and even arrest those who violate Covid management guidelines issued under the Disaster Management Act, the stage is set for another round of tussle between the police and the citizens on streets.
Weekly infection population ratio state’s new criteria
The restrictions, however, are not applicable for travel citing emergencies like vaccination, Covid testing, medical emergency, purchase of medicine, death of relatives, marriage of close relatives, local travel to catch long distance bus/train/flight/ship, and for attending examinations, say the guidelines. The state has managed to provide just around 52% of the eligible population with the first dose of the Covid vaccine and a vast majority of them belong to the 45 plus category. Despite repeated attempts, the chief secretary wa s unavailable for comment.
The new guidelines attempt to address the issue of livelihood by allowing almost all establishments to open and function. It has also been decided to extend the shop timing from 7am to 9pm. The major change in replacing the TPR-based classification of local bodies and the locking down of high TPR local bodies with the weekly infection population ratio has also been detailed in the order. The two-day weekend lockdown will be replaced by a Sunday lockdown.
However, Sundays falling on August 15 and August 22 will be exempted from lockdown considering the Independence Day and Onam respectively. The ban on political, social and cultural gatherings would continue. People visiting devotional places should consider the space available in the area to ensure social distancing. A maximum of 40 people can be there at a time. Only 20 people will be allowed to attend marriages and funeral functions.
Following the new GO, state-level bankers’ committee issued a directive to allow only persons who have taken at least one dose of Covid vaccine before two weeks, or who are in possession of RT-PCR negative certificate taken 72 hours before or who are in possession of Covid positive results more than a month old will be allowed inside the bank from Thursday, said S Premkumar, convener, SLBC.