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‘Maximised restricted lockdown’ in Chennai, 3 other districts from June 19 amid Covid-19 crisis
The lockdown will stay in place till June 30, chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami announced on Monday.
Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami announced ‘maximised restricted lockdown’ in areas of Chennai, Kanchipuram, Chengalpattu and Tiruvallur districts from June 19 to 30 in the wake of rising Covid-19 cases.
During the 12-day long complete lockdown period, only essential services will be allowed with restrictions.
On two Sundays (June 21 and 28) there shall be a full-scale shutdown without any relaxations, the chief minister said.
The chief minister’s announcement came following a consultative meeting with experts and senior officials on Monday.
Dr P Kuganantham, a senior epidemiologist and member of the 19-member expert committee on Covid-19 set up by the government, said, “We have advised the government to cut down relaxations and (further) prevent the spread of the virus and the government will take a decision.”
Also read: No Delhi lockdown is being planned, says CM Arvind Kejriwal
Tamil Nadu is struggling with the rising number of Covid-19 cases. On Monday, Tamil Nadu’s Covid-19 tally jumped to 44,661 with Chennai accounting for around 70 percent of the cases in the state.
Last week, the CM said that capital city Chennai, which is also the largest in the state, is densely populated due to which the number of Covid-19 cases are more there.
Palaniswami also said there is no community transmission of Covid-19 in Tamil Nadu and that the virus has been contained in most districts.
Meanwhile, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has ruled out any possibility of a lockdown in the national capital. With over 40,000 Covid-19 cases, Delhi has the third-highest incidence of Covid-19 infections in the country after Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.
“Many people are speculating whether another lockdown in Delhi is being planned. There are no such plans,” CM Kejriwal said on Monday.
With 332,424 coronavirus cases, India’s is the fourth worst-hit country in the world. While 169,797 people have recovered from the deadly contagion across the country, India’s death toll stands at 9,520.
