Delhi Curbs: 50% Office Limit, Odd-Even For Shops, 20 At Weddings

Private offices in Delhi will operate at 50 per cent, malls and shops will open on odd-even basis and weddings will be allowed with only up to 20 people as new restrictions under a "yellow alert" take effect in the capital from today amid a surge in Covid cases. Though the restrictions were announced at 3 pm, more than half-way through the work day, the government said they would be in "immediate effect".

Here are the new rules -

• There will be a night curfew between 10 pm and 5 am daily.
• Private offices will function with 50% staff barring those designated essential services, which includes hospitals, media, banks, insurance companies and telecom services.
• Weddings are allowed with up to 20 people and they can take place only at home or in court. The 20-person limit also applies to funerals.
• Malls and shops will open on an odd-even basis, between 10 am and 8 pm. Online deliveries can continue.
• Standalone shops or markets in residential colonies will not follow the odd-even rule.
• Cinemas, multiplexes and gyms will be closed again. Schools and colleges will stay shut.
• Restaurants and bars will be closed at 10 pm and they will operate at half capacity.
• The Delhi Metro will function with half its capacity.
• Salons, barber shops and parlours will be allowed. Spas and wellness clinics will be closed.
• Political, religious, festival-related gatherings won't be allowed. Religious places can stay open but visitors won't be allowed.
• Public parks will also stay open, but picnics or gatherings won't be allowed.

The restrictions follow Delhi's biggest single-day spike in infections in six months yesterday, with 331 new cases. In two weeks, the share of Omicron cases has gone from 2-3 per cent to 25-30 per cent. The positivity rate - the percentage of samples that return positive -- was above 0.5 per cent for two days, which, according to GRAP, is the trigger for a yellow alert.