E-Paper
Telangana lockdown ends on June 19; Experts' opinion consulted, says CMO
Telangana lockdown: The CMO has instructed officials to lift all restrictions in the state starting from June 20. Schools in the state will reopen from July 1.
The Telangana Cabinet on Saturday decided to go for a full lifting of the lockdown starting from June 20, the CMO tweeted. The decision has been taken considering the Covid-19 situation of the state and after consulting medical authorities, the Chief minister's office said. The cabinet was scheduled to meet on Saturday to review the existing restrictions as the present lockdown, extended in the first half of June, will end today. Schools and other educational institutes in the state will reopen on July 1.
Hyderabad Metro Rail will now operate from 7am to 9pm from Sunday.
With the overall Covid-19 situation steadily improving in the country, several states are embracing unlocking. But a complete unlocking after the second wave of the pandemic is unprecedented and experts are also warning against it. The Telangana government said the decision has been taken consulting experts' opinion.
During the lockdown, the state provided relaxation between 6am and 5pm and also allowed a grace period of one hour. So, activities were actually permitted till 6pm.
Telangana on Friday reported 1,417 new Covid-19 cases and 12 fatalities. Though the state has never been in the frontline of the wave of the pandemic — be it the first or the second — it witnessed a serious situation from time to time. The overall Covid-19 tally of the state is 6,10,834, while the state's total toll is 3,546 — till Friday.
States which went under lockdown in the wake of the second phase of the pandemic, like Delhi, Maharashtra are reopening in phases with a limited set of activities being allowed. Maharashtra too has divided its dictricts on various zones depending on Covid-19 severity and allowed activities accordingly.
Risks of complete lifting of lockdown
A complete withdrawal of restriction involves the risk of possible crowding. Uncontrolled crowding will hasten the third wave in the country, experts have said. AIIMS director Randeep Guleria on Saturday said the next wave of the pandemic may strike the country in the next six to eight weeks, if covid-appropriate behaviour is not followed appropriately.
