Telangana joins list of states seeking extension of lockdown

Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao said on Monday that India should not lift the nationwide lockdown until the Covid-19 outbreak is brought further under

Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao said on Monday that India should not lift the nationwide lockdown until the Covid-19 outbreak is brought further under control, becoming one of the most prominent officials yet to suggest that the unprecedented curbs be extended further.

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A similar opinion was expressed by a top bureaucrat from Uttar Pradesh, who suggested the state – UP has recorded 305 infections – may continue to be in a lockdown after April 14, the date till when the current curb is scheduled to last.

“The lockdown is the reason the country is saved and has seen very few cases. A country like India has to be careful otherwise it will become uncontrollable. The economy will get hurt but at least we are not seeing deaths like Italy, Spain and the US,” KCR said, adding that he had suggested to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the curbs be extended for two more weeks.

“At least some of the restrictions should stay for a bit more. Otherwise, India will not be able to handle things if the lockdown is hastily lifted,” he said.

In UP, additional chief secretary, Home, Awanish Kumar Awasthi, said that following a recent spike in Covid-19 cases, the lockdown in the state is likely to continue. “The state government wishes to make it clear that the lockdown is not likely to be lifted till there is a single coronavirus case in the state. The lifting of the lockdown means UP has become coronavirus free,” additional chief secretary, Home, Awanish Kumar Awasthi said at a press conference in the state capital.

Officials from multiple states have indicated previously that districts with no Covid-19 cases are likely to be given relaxations from curbs on movements and business activity first, but those that are classified as hot spots are likely to stay under severe restrictions.

This approach is also the strategy outlined by the Union health ministry, which has briefed states on the need to ring-fence districts with large outbreaks or multiple clusters so that infections do not spread.

Punjab is expected to continue with the lockdown in most parts, but issue curfew passes to allow harvesting from April 15. “A final call will be taken on April 12 or 13,” Suresh Kumar, Punjab chief minister’s chief principal secretary, said on Sunday.

Last week, a minister in Maharashtra indicated the state may extend the lockdown by a couple of weeks, especially in Mumbai and other urban areas of the state. “Lifting it fully in a city like Mumbai is unlikely,” health minister Rajesh Tope said on Friday.