new Delhi: As Covid-19 cases continue to rise in China, the country has resorted to a lockdown to contain the spread of the virus. On Sunday, the local government of Shenzhen city announced a strict lockdown after the city recorded 66 infections in a day, news agency AFP reported.
The city is a tech hub with about 17 million people living in it. It is also home to tech giants such as Huawei and Tencent. The administration has asked residents to stay at home with only one family member to collect essential items every two days.
Recently, China has closed non-essential services as well as schools and even restaurants. According to AFP, the lockdown and suspension of transport services will last till March 20.
China is facing the biggest jump in Covid cases since the early days of the pandemic as cases on the Sunda doubled to 3,400.
“If prevention and control are not strengthened in a timely and decisive manner, it can easily become large-scale community transmission,” Shenzhen health official Lin Hancheng told a briefing on Sunday.
Schools in Shanghai have also been closed for the time being. In addition to these, other northeastern cities are also being closed to prevent the spread of the virus which is being led by Omicron Editions.
Jilin, the city at the center of the outbreak in the northeastern part of the country, also remained partially closed on Saturday. Similar is the case with Yanji, where 700,000 people live, who were imprisoned in their homes on Sunday.
Zhang Yan, an official of the Jilin Health Commission, said on Sunday, “There is insufficient understanding of its characteristics. omicron different … and the decision has been wrong.”