All public buses, private passenger buses and taxis will have to halt operation while all types of passenger bus moving past the province are not allowed to stop to drop off or pick up passengers.

The suspension is not applied for vehicles carrying people that need to travel for state affairs and those on the mission of preventing and fighting the pandemic.

Police will enhance their patrol and inspection to strictly handle all that violate the new rule, the provincial Transport Department announced Thursday.

The province, home to more than 1.8 million people, has also asked its residents to stay at home and only go out when it's "really necessary."

For the ongoing Covid-19 wave Vietnam, Bac Giang Province has the highest number of infections with 728 cases. The national tally is 1,836.

A majority of infections are recorded among workers of Hosiden Viet Nam Co.,Ltd in Quang Chau Industrial Park and Shin Young Co. Ltd in Van Trung Industrial Park.

On Monday, the province has had to shut down those two IPs along with two others which have also suffered infections among workers.

It has also applied social distancing orders on four districts of Viet Yen, Luc Nam, Lang Giang, Yen Dung and Bac Giang Town, putting more than one million, or 60 percent of its population under medical isolation.

Hoang Phuong