All non-essential commercial activities will be suspended till March 31 in nine districts - including Bengaluru Urban - where COVID-19 cases have been reported. Only essential services such as pharmaceuticals, grocery and agricultural services will be operational, according to Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai.
The nine districts in Karnataka where COVID-19 cases are reported include Bengaluru Rural, Bengaluru Urban, Kalaburagi, Mysuru, Kodagu, Chikkaballapur, Dakshina Kannada, Dharwad and Belagavi. Inter-district transport services from these districts will also be suspended till March 31.
Briefing reporters following the second meeting of the task force formed to tackle COVID-19 during the day, Bommai said that the State government has suspended public transport facilities in Karnataka on Monday. However, special arrangements are likely to be made for students appearing for the last second PU exam scheduled tomorrow, March 23.
He said that though Janta Curfew will be lifted at 9 pm on Sunday evening, prohibitory orders will be in place throughout the state till midnight. Directions have also been issued to industries to ask factories to deploy only half the work force per day to prevent the transmission of the disease, he added.