Curfew, partial lockdown for Bangkok and nearby provinces from Monday

The lockdown covers five provinces around Bangkok - Nakhon Pathom, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Prakan and Samut Sakhon – as well as Yala, Pattani, Narathiwat and Songkhla in the far South.

Lockdown measures in the nine provinces are as follows:

• Work from home encouraged

• Interprovincial travel discouraged

• Public transport must stop operating from 9pm to 3am

• Convenience stores must close from 8pm to 4am

• Malls closed except for food courts, pharmacies, supermarkets. restaurants, banks, financial institutions, and electronics shops which can stay open until 8pm

• Restaurants, food stalls or cafés must close by 8pm

• Closure of spas, beauty clinics and massage shops

• Gatherings of more than five people banned

• Closure of all schools

• 10pm-4am curfew

The police and Army have been instructed to set up checkpoints from Saturday to ensure compliance with the measures. The CCSA announcement did not say how long the measures would last, though earlier this week authorities proposed a 14-day partial lockdown.

Meanwhile, the government aims to vaccinate 1 million people aged 60 and over in the next one or two weeks. Authorities said the US government’s donation of 1.5 million Pfizer vaccine doses will be distributed to Dark-Red provinces to inoculate medics, seniors, people with chronic health conditions, foreigners and priority groups including students, diplomats and athletes.