Bhubaneswar: The unlock process in Odisha capital is likely to commence from June 18 while night curfew and weekend shutdown might continue in the city till June 30, sources said.

An official of the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) said around 250-300 COVID-19 patients were shifted to hospitals daily in the month of May while the figure has come down to 100, this month. Many patients are recovering in home isolation without the requirement of hospital admission. While the Test Positivity Rate (TPR) in Bhubaneswar is currently around 13%, it will take about one month to drop below 5% as citizens from other districts are also undergoing COVID-19 test here, the official said.

"We will give a proposal to the state government for relaxing the lockdown restrictions in the city while continuing the weekend shutdown and night curfew," the BMC official said.

If the restrictions are relaxed, markets, private offices, hotels and bus services will be permitted in the first phase in the city. Attendance limit for weddings and funerals might be relaxed after unlock while meetings will not be allowed. Malls, cinema halls, swimming pools, spas and gyms might be permitted to function in the later phase, the official added.