With the USA and India being the worst-hit countries in the world by Covid-19, Europe has been emerging as a new hotspot for the disease outbreak after having controlled the situation once before. The number of fresh cases of Covid-19 recorded daily has been increasing at an alarming rate, regarding which the national authorities have introduced some new restrictions to control the outbreak.

As a matter of fact, last week the total number of cases recorded in the European Union and UK together was higher than the daily count of Covid-19 cases in the USA alone. On an average, Europe has been recording 80,000 fresh cases daily as per the recent data.

After the national lockdown restrictions had been lifted in Europe during the summer, the number of cases recorded daily had eventually fallen. However, recently these numbers have been on a rise, making the situation uncontrollable.

European nations like the Netherlands, Portugal, the UK, Germany, France, and Italy have observed a continuous rise in daily cases for the past one month. Last week, the majority of the European nations recorded the maximum number of Covid-19 cases in a day particularly on October 14 and 15.

As a consequence, renewed versions of a nationwide lockdown have been announced in the UK and other European countries to avoid facing another massive outbreak, which would worsen the situation.

Curfews have been implemented in Paris and other cities in France. Italy has made it necessary for its residents to wear masks at all times, when outside their homes. It was initially the worst-hit nation by Covid-19 during the early months of the pandemic. It is also considering banning parties and large gatherings to practice social distancing. Madrid, the capital of Spain has been locked down completely.

In addition to this, revised restrictions have been implemented in London, UK. Restaurants and bars have been closed until further notice in Berlin, Germany. Bars have also been shut in Brussels, Belgium. In Ireland, restaurants, and bars are only allowed to serve food and beverages outside with certain restrictions, along with introducing a ban on social gatherings.

The author is a student member of Amity Centre of Happiness.