China locks down Chengdu's 21 million residents as Covid cases detected across the country

Chinese city of Chengdu, the capital of Southwest China's Sichuan Province, locked down its 21.2 million residents to contain a Covid-19 outbreak, amid a rising number of COVID-19 cases in the city.

Chengdu is the biggest city to shut down since Shanghai’s crushing two-month lockdown earlier this year. Local health authorities said that all residents will also undergo a four-day nucleic acid test from Thursday to Sunday. Two airports in Chengdu have cancelled a large number of flights on Thursday due to the virus spread.

The move which will upend the lives of millions of people and businesses, with repercussions for China’s economy and beyond, shows the



country’s commitment to the Covid Zero approach espoused by President Xi Jinping ahead of the crucial 20th national party congress, despite the disruption it’s causing.

Meanwhile, the southern Chinese tech hub Shenzhen tightened COVID curbs as cases continued to mount on Thursday, with large events and indoor entertainment suspended for three days in the city's most populous district, Baoan. 

The COVID control measures have affected cities from the southern cities of Shenzhen and Guangzhou to the northern port city of Dalian, and from the western metropolis of Chengdu to Shijiazhuang in central Hebei province.