E-Paper
Stricter lockdown derails Maharashtra’s ‘Mission Begin Again’ campaign
Mumbai: Maharashtra government’s Mission Begin Again campaign, which had started from June 8 in a bid to revive economic activities amid the raging coronavirus disease
Mumbai: Maharashtra government’s Mission Begin Again campaign, which had started from June 8 in a bid to revive economic activities amid the raging coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak, has been derailed because of the local administrations’ enforcement of stricter lockdown restrictions that are creating confusion among the public.
On Sunday, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray had stated during his interaction with the public via a social media platform that though the prevailing lockdown restrictions were extended till July 31, the efforts were on to give more relaxations in a calibrated manner.
Many district administrations and civic authorities have announced the reimposition of a stricter lockdown because of a spike in the Covid-19 positive cases.
Besides Thane, Mira-Bhayander, Kalyan-Dombivili corporations, stricter lockdown norms have also been announced in Nashik, Ratnagiri, and Sindhudurg districts.
The densely populated Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), which comprises the urban agglomeration around the city, has reported a spike of Covid-19 positive cases within a week from 1,014,96 to 1,29,088 that works out to 71% of the total viral load of Maharashtra.
On Wednesday, a state government official, while requesting anonymity, told HT: “There were plans of allowing more people to operate in red zones and inter-district transport services to function in non-red zones, as per the Mission Begin Again campaign. However, the sudden surge in Covid-19 positive cases has put a spanner in the works. Local authorities have reinforced stricter lockdowns to contain the spread of the disease.”
Earlier, many experts had warned of a spike, if relaxations were not carried out in a calibrated manner.
Dr. Peehu Pardeshi from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) had said, “There have been new spurts because of the relaxations. It has been observed in many other countries. Phase-wise relaxation should be accompanied by stricter monitoring and ensuring social distancing norms. The public also needs to take adequate precautions.”
On Wednesday, Maharashtra recorded its sharpest single-day jump in Covid-19 positive cases, as it reported 5,537 fresh infections and the overall tally stands at 180,298.
In Mumbai, 1,487 new Covid-19 positive cases were recorded, and the city’s total viral load is 79,145.
