Beijing Districts Urged To Enter 'emergency Mode'

"); jQuery("#212 h3").html("

Related News Programmes

"); });

2020-12-27 HKT 22:07

Share this story

facebook

  • The authorities in Beijing are stepping up restrictions to stem the spread of Covid-19. File photo: Reuters

    The authorities in Beijing are stepping up restrictions to stem the spread of Covid-19. File photo: Reuters

Beijing has tightened Covid-19 curbs over concerns that China's mass travel during the holiday period could cause cases to spike in the capital, as it reported locally transmitted cases for a fourth straight day on Sunday.

A meeting led by the capital's Communist party boss, Cai Qi, urged all districts in Beijing to enter an "emergency" mode, sealing off residential compounds and villages where infections are found.

Shenzhen reported one asymptomatic case on Sunday, a patient who made two business trips to Beijing this month.

Shunyi district, where all Beijing's recent coronavirus cases have been reported, has declared a wartime mode and testing for all its 800,000 people. All the cases reported on Saturday were close contacts of previous cases.

Two villages in Shunyi have been sealed off as a result.

Chaoyang district, which neighbours Shunyi, has finished testing 234,413 people in three neighbourhoods, with none testing positive. People who have not received their test results are not allowed to go out, the district government said.

Some residential compounds in Tongzhou have reimposed temperature checks upon entry and the number of entrances have been reduced, according to local media reports.

China has largely brought the coronavirus under control but sporadic cases are resurfacing in a small number of cities. Authorities plan to vaccinate 50 million people in high-risk groups before the week-long Lunar New Year holidays from February 11, said state media Global Times.

Beijing has asked its civil servants to stay in the city from January 1 until the holiday and asked the public to avoid unnecessary travel during the period.

Public venues such as theme parks and churches have scaled back operating hours. Some Catholic churches in Beijing, including Wangfujing's Catholic Church, have stopped admitting churchgoers and halted group activities, the archdiocese of Beijing said on its website. (Reuters)

RECENT NEWS

Tycoon Sits China's University Exams For 27th Time

Among the millions of fresh-faced high schoolers sitting the nation's dreaded "gaokao" college entrance exam on Wednesda... Read more

China's First Home-grown Large Cruise Liner Undocks

The first large cruise liner developed by China completed its undocking in Shanghai on Tuesday, marking its complete tra... Read more

Chinese, US Diplomats Hold 'frank' Talks In Beijing

Meetings between senior mainland and US officials in China this week struck an upbeat chord, with both sides agreeing to... Read more

China's Cruise Industry Set To Make Waves Again

China's cruise industry, suspended for more than three years due to the pandemic, is expected to resume operations in th... Read more

Toll From Deadly Landslide Rises To 19

All 19 people caught in a landslide in Sichuan province on Sunday have been confirmed dead, state media reported, announ... Read more

'Nato-like Alliance Disastrous For Asia-Pacific'

Defence Minister Li Shangfu on Sunday told the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore that any moves to establ... Read more