Uttarakhand has announced its latest set of relaxations as it slowly emerges from the lockdown it has been in since March. Under the Unlock 2.0 national guidelines, the northern state is opening itself up to travellers from within the state as well as from other parts of India , but with a number of conditions.
Here is what you need to know if you are planning on visiting Uttarakhand in the next few weeks:
Inter-state travel
All travellers coming into Uttarakhand will have to register on the Dehradun Smart City website and provide their contact details and other particulars such as where they are travelling from and where they will be staying while in the state. They can also upload any medical documentation, including any COVID-19 test results. Travellers will be expected to produce hard copies of this medical information when they arrive in the state. All travellers are expected to also have the Arogya Setu app downloaded on their phones.
Asymptomatic travellers coming from cities and regions in India with a high number of COVID-19 cases will be required to spend seven days in institutional quarantine, whether at a free government facility or at a paid quarantine hotel of their choosing. Such travellers will then have to spend another week in isolation at home. This also applies to asymptomatic Indians returning from overseas. Even if you happen to have transited through a city or airport in a city with a high number of COVID-19 cases, you will have to spend time in institutional and then home quarantine for a total of 14 days.
Asymptomatic travellers from parts of the country with a low number of incidences of infections will only have to self-quarantine at home for a week.
Pregnant women, the seriously-ill, those above the age of 65 years and those travelling with children under the age of 10 will be exempt from institutional quarantine, even if they are coming from a part of the country with high incidences of infection. Instead, they will be required to self-quarantine at home for 14 days.
Uttarakhand residents who have had to travel out of state to a place with a high number of incidences of COVID-19 for a personal emergency and have stayed there for no more than three days will be exempt from quarantine when they get back home to the state. Travellers from out of state who are visiting for a personal emergency will also not be expected to self-quarantine at home.
Also exempt from quarantine are ministers of the Government of India, ministers of state governments, chief justices and other judges of the Supreme Court of India and high courts as well as all other judicial officers from anywhere in the country. Law practitioners from the state as well local legislators will also not have to quarantine, and neither will any state or federal government employees.
People travelling on business essential to the state, such as construction and other public works projects, as well as those employed by businesses based in Uttarakhand, will be allowed to travel to and from the state without the need to quarantine.
Uttarakhand hotels
Uttarakhand is allowing all hotels, homestays and B&Bs outside of containment zones to open, but guests from out of state will have to book a minimum stay of seven days. Only guests who can produce a negative COVID-19 test result no older than 72 hours will be exempt from this. Also, only these guests who have recent negative COVID-19 tests results will be allowed to visit local tourist sites. Hotel bars still have to remain closed, but guests can order drinks from the room service menu.
Uttarakhand restaurants, malls and markets
While these establishments outside containment zones were allowed to open earlier as lockdown restrictions were eased, they can now remain open for longer. Restaurants can be open from 7am till 9pm, while malls and marketplaces can be open between 7am and 8pm.
Temples in Uttarakhand
The state is opening up all temples between 7am and 8pm. The state has already started its popular Char Dham Yatra pilgrimage but it is currently only available to residents of Uttarakhand.
Weddings and banquets
Asymptomatic brides and grooms, even if they are travelling from parts of the country with a high number of COVID-19 cases, will be exempt from quarantine. However, they can't travel anywhere besides to and from the wedding venue. Asymptomatic wedding guests coming from high-risk cities will also not be required to adhere to the seven-day minimum stay at a hotel. Banquet halls can have no more than 50 guests at a time and will have to provide a complete manifest of guests and their contact details to aid contact tracing in case of an outbreak. And while the state has a curfew between the hours of 9pm and 7am, this does not apply to weddings guests returning home or to their hotels and also essential workers.