As India is witnessing a massive surge in COVID-19, Uttar Pradesh has imposed a night curfew in several of its cities. The restriction has been imposed in Lucknow, Prayagraj, Kanpur and Varanasi and came into effect on Thursday.

Also read: Punjab imposes night curfew till April 30; bans political gathering

Lucknow’s Police Commissioner DK Thakur on Wednesday said that the curfew will be in effect from 9 pm to 6 am and has been imposed till April 30, reported ANI.

In a tweet on Wednesday, Lucknow’s District Magistrate (DM) said that all government, non-government or privately managed schools, colleges and educational institutions and coaching institutes will be closed till April 15. Medical, nursing and para-medical institutes, however, will remain open.

Exams and practicals will be conducted in recognized educational institutions in strict compliance with the COVID-19 protocol,” the DM tweeted.

In Prayagraj, the night curfew has been imposed from 10 pm to 8 am. The restriction came into effect on Thursday, till further notice.

In Kanpur, the night curfew has been imposed from 10 pm till 6 am. It’ll last till April 30.

In Varanasi too, a week-long curfew has been imposed from 9 pm to 6 am.

Also read: COVID-19 cases surge in 8 states, resulting in 81.42% of single-day infections: Health Ministry

India on Wednesday recorded 126,789 new cases of COVID-19, the highest single-day spike since the pandemic began. 685 deaths were recorded in the past 24 hours. The country has recorded over 12.9 million cases and 166,862 deaths.

On Wednesday, Uttar Pradesh recorded 6,023 new coronavirus cases and 40 deaths. The state has recorded 645,930 cases and 8,964 since the pandemic began.