Amid a surge in Covid-19 cases, the Uttar Pradesh government has announced a lockdown across the state on Sunday.

To enforce wearing of masks, the state government has doubled the fine to Rs 1,000 for those caught without masks for the first time and 10 times the fine amount for those caught again.

"There will be a weekly closure in all rural and urban areas of the state on Sunday.Only sanitation, sanitisation and emergency services will operate during this period. Necessary awareness works should also be done in this regard," an official statement said here quoting Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath .

"A fine of Rs 1,000 will be imposed if someone is caught without a mask for the first time. If caught for the second time, a penalty of ten times the fine amount should be imposed," he said.

The state on Thursday reported 104 deaths and 22,439 fresh cases, pushing the fatality count to 9,480 and the total infection number to 7,66,360.

The chief minister said that last year, the MLA development fund proved useful in the work related to the spread of the virus. This year also, according to rules, the funds can be used in Covid management on recommendation of legislators.

He said the first phase of panchayat elections was completed in a very peaceful manner and strict legal action should be taken against those involved in breaching peace at some places so that it can set an example for other phases of the polls.

Earlier in the day, Adityanath also ordered the establishment of a 1,000-bed makeshift Covid hospital in Lucknow to tackle the rising number of coronavirus cases.

The Chief Minister made the direction for setting up the hospital during a review meeting with divisional commissioners, district magistrates, chief medical officers and his Team-11 (a core team of 11 officers).

"A 1,000-bed Covid hospital should be established in Lucknow. The venue of the Defence Expo may be a good place for this," said a government spokesperson, quoting the Chief Minister.

He directed the officials to review the availability of medical oxygen on a daily basis. "Continuous supply of oxygen to Covid hospitals in all districts must be ensured. The control room set up by the Food Safety and Drug Administration Department in connection with this, should remain active 24 hours, he said.

The department should ensure adequate availability of Remdesivir, he said, adding: Its monitoring should be done by the Chief Secretary's office. Additional Remdesivir should be purchased while assessing the situation for the next one month.

Adityanath directed the officials to ensure smooth operation of ambulance services.