Health staff take samples from people at high risk of COVID-19 in Hoàn Kiếm District, Hà Nội for testing. VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Hà Nội will apply strict social distancing measures across the city from 6am on Saturday July 24 to prevent further spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the latest dispatch issued by local authorities on Friday evening.

The measures to stamp out worsening outbreaks of COVID-19 will be in place for 15 days and follow the Prime Minister's Directive 16. At present, 19 southern localities including HCM City are implementing social distancing measures under Directive 16.

Under the new measures, all public transport services including buses, taxis, contract vehicles and coaches are banned, excluding those in service of pandemic prevention and control and transporting workers and experts.

Motorbikes are also suspended from transporting passengers.

People in the city are asked to stay at home and only go outside in necessary cases like business trips, working at essential businesses (State agencies, factories, essential shops and service providers), buy food and medicines, or emergencies such as medical issues, fires or natural disasters.

Masks are mandatory in public. People must maintain a distance of two metres in public, and must not congregate in groups larger than two outside of hospital, workplaces, or schools.

People are required to submit health declaration forms via website www.tokhaiyte.vn or Ncovi and Bluezone apps. Those who have symptoms such as fever, coughing or difficulty breathing must contact local medical establishments for further instructions.

Non-essential services and businesses must close.

The businesses and services that are still allowed to operate include factories, production facilities, transport projects, construction sites, essential businesses or suppliers (food, medicines, utility, gas and oil, etc.), educational institutions, banks and treasuries along with bank-related and business support activities (such as notaries and attorney offices, registration offices, etc.), securities, post offices, import and export activities, medical examination and treatment, and funeral services.

Delivery services such as Grab will continue to operate as normal but will not be allowed to transport passengers.

People are asked to hold off from organising weddings, while funeral services must not have more than 20 attendants and will face monitoring by the local health authorities.

All unnecessary meetings are banned.

Production businesses, service establishments, and industrial zones must strictly observe COVID-19 prevention and control measures.

For the agencies and offices of Hà Nội and the central Government based in Hà Nội, companies, enterprises and corporations (including foreign-invested companies) must develop arrangements to ensure their staff work online and only go to the offices in case of necessity.

Malls, supermarkets, traditional markets and wholesale markets in the city are to ensure adequate supply of daily necessities for the local population, arrange stalls and reception procedures (from parking to entry) to reduce the number of customers in the same place at the same time, minimise close contacts and encourage online shopping and delivery.

The municipal authorities requested the State agencies and businesses to work out plans that can ensure smooth, undisrupted transportation of goods and production materials.

Industrial parks or production plants with workers residing in Hà Nội or going to Hà Nội from other provinces and cities must register with local authorities (details on the number of workers and experts, their places of residence or accommodation, vehicles transporting them, etc.) and perform regular COVID-19 screening as per health authorities’ guidelines.

The dispatch said in response to the complex development of the COVID-19 pandemic in Hà Nội and other localities and Hà Nội has kept recording new community transmission cases without clear sources of infection, thus posing huge risks of community transmission without strict prevention and control measures, the municipal authorities issued the new measures to ensure health and safety for people.

Hà Nội has recorded 666 infections during the fourth wave of infections (since late April this year). VNS