Pune: The coronavirus outbreak has been spreading rapidly, and in order to break the chain and make Lonavala a coronavirus free place, the lockdown has been evoked for seven days, which will commence from Monday midnight.

Five coronavirus patients were found to be positive in Lonavala on Friday. Additionally, five others were also tested positive after the contact tracing was done on Saturday, while 13 swabs have been sent to Laboratory and reports are awaited.

In Lonavala, the number of coronavirus patients has reached to 28 on Saturday.

In past, till the day coronavirus did not reach Lonavala, the markets were operating regularly between 9 am to 5 pm. However, the local administration and municipal council on Saturday has taken a decision to keep Lonavala closed for seven days, considering the rise of coronavirus cases and to make sure that the market does not get over crowded.

The Lonavala Municipal Council chairperson Ravi Pawar mentioned that, "The first four days will be strictly closed, during which only medical and dispensaries will be open. The milk centers will be open for two hours in the morning. After four days, grocery and vegetable shops will be allowed to open for two to three hours."

The administration has further appealed to the citizens that they have ample time of two days to buy essential goods for seven day lockdown and avoid rushing to the market.