New Delhi: The three-week nationwide lockdown to contain the coronavirus outbreak looks set to be extended by two more weeks till the end of April after a consensus emerged among states on Saturday to continue the curbs amid the tally of confirmed infections crossing the 7,500-mark, with a record increase of cases in 24 hours.
While asking state governments to take steps to curb lockdown violations and ensure adherence to social distancing, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also announced a shift in focus from 'Jaan hai to jahaan hai' (health is wealth) to 'Jaan bhi, jahaan bhi' (lives as well as livelihoods), which many see as indications towards relaxations for certain economic activities, including for industrial and agriculture sector.
During a video conference with chief ministers, Modi told them that the next three to four weeks would be critical to determine the impact of steps taken till now to curb the virus spread.
During their interaction, several chief ministers demanded financial and fiscal relief from the Centre to fight the pandemic, while Modi suggested measures to incentivise direct marketing of farm produce to help farmers as well as other steps. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the states have demanded Rs 10 lakh crore package.
Maharashtra, Bengal and Telangana later on Saturday announced they would extend the lockdown until April 30 even before an official extension to the nationwide lockdown is awaited. Odisha, Punjab and Rajasthan earlier this week had already declared the extension in the states.
Officials privy to discussions said the Centre is likely to categorise the entire country into red, orange and green zones depending on the number of COVID-19 cases during the proposed extended period of lockdown and might allow limited services to function in safe zones and virtually restrict all activities in the high-risk areas. Schools and colleges may remain closed everywhere, but small-scale industries and liquor shops may be allowed to open, officials added.
After attending the interaction with Modi, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said the second phase of the two-week lockdown would not be the same as the ongoing three-week one, which entered its 18th day and was originally scheduled to last until April 14.
"The Prime Minister said during the next 15 days, the lockdown will be relaxed in a graded manner... agriculture and industrial sectors will be given relaxation. Government offices will be allowed to function with partial strength. He (Modi) will announce such measures soon," Yediyurappa said.
Other sources said all central ministers have been asked to resume office from Monday and put together plans for the post-lockdown period to kickstart the economy. All ministries have also been directed that joint secretary and above rank officers will resume work in respective departments and one-third of the essential staff members in every ministry need to be present.
While government officials said guidelines for the second phase of the lockdown would be announced in the next few days, the Union Health Ministry said testing and treatment infrastructures were being augmented on a daily basis and asserted that the number of confirmed cases could have reached 8.2 lakh by April 15 in the absence of a lockdown and other containment measures.
Positive cases cross 7,500-mark
The Health Ministry on Friday evening put the number of confirmed cases so far across the country at 7,529, with 242 deaths. These results are from nearly 1.7 lakh tests conducted so far across the country. The ministry said 1,035 new cases and 40 deaths were reported in 24 hours till Saturday afternoon.
But a PTI tally of numbers reported by various states as of 9pm showed at least 8,320 positive coronavirus cases and 287 deaths. More than 800 people have been cured and discharged so far.
Fresh cases were reported from various places, including in Maharashtra, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
While Maharashtra saw its tally of confirmed cases rising to at least 1,761, Mumbai alone has more than 1,100 cases now. Delhi has also seen its tally cross 1,000, while Tamil Nadu is also fast approaching this mark. Rajasthan has over 600 cases, while states with over 400 cases included Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh.
The death toll in Maharashtra alone has reached 127, while at least 40 have died in Madhya Pradesh, 22 in Gujarat, 19 in Delhi and 12 in Telangna, as per the latest numbers announced by respective states.
(With inputs from PTI)
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