This country to lift all social-distancing rules except mask mandate

Seoul, April 15: South Korea on Friday decided to lift all social distancing rules next week, except for mask mandate, as the Covid-19 pandemic was estimated to have peaked last month.

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum told a pandemic-tackling meeting that the business curfew at midnight and the cap on 10 persons for private gatherings will be all lifted from next Monday. The 299-person limit on events and rallies as well as the 70-percent capacity cap on religious activities will be lifted from April 18, while eating food will be permitted inside movie theaters, indoor sports facilities and religious facilities from April 25. All social distancing rules will also be lifted. Also read | CBSE to restore single board exam pattern for Classes X, XII from next session Kim said that wearing mask indoors would be inevitable for a considerable time, noting that decision will be made on whether to lift the outdoor mask mandate two weeks later. The health authorities estimated that the resurgence, caused by the spread of the Omicron variant and its subvariant BA.2, peaked in the middle of March. The government will adjust the four-tier infectious disease level of Coivid-19 from Class 1 to Class 2 in phases over a four-week period to allow patients to be treated at local clinics and hospitals without quarantine. In the latest tally, South Korea reported 125,846 new COVID-19 cases for the past 24 hours. The daily caseload was down from 148,443 in the previous day and far lower than 205,312 a week earlier. Also read | UP's Gautam Buddh Nagar reports 43 new Covid-19 cases, 16 of them children -PTC News