'Govt unhappy with districts announcing lockdowns'

Ranchi: The trend of districts imposing lockdowns on their own has not gone down well within the state government, a very senior bureaucrat in the government said on Tuesday. “All those arbitrarily announcing lockdown on their own are soon going to be taken to task,” the official told TOI on Tuesday evening.
Chatra and Hazaribag districts have announced a week-long lockdown from Wednesday to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. Last week, Jamshedpur closed down market areas for about 16 hours from Saturday while commercial establishments in Bistupur remained shut for three days since Monday.
The official added, “Imposing a lockdown is a state subject and there is are restrictions in force till July 31. We have not opened public transport, malls, schools and non-essential shops in rural areas are shut. Barber shops are closed and so are hotels and dine-ins at restaurants even though Unlock 1 and 2 have offered a host of relaxations,” he added.
Jharkhand chief secretary Sukhdev Singh said a section of media and WhatsApp groups are spreading rumours about the state going for total lockdown. Talking to TOI, he said, “We are keeping an eye on the situation, but lockdown deliberations are still to be done at my level or at government’s level. The key for districts is to ensure all the prescribed SOPs and safety norms are followed. Most things in Jharkhand are already under lockdown till this month end.”
Chief minister Hemant Soren, who quarantined himself last week, was not available for comments. Talking to reporters last week, state finance minister Rameshwar Oraon had said that government may consider in reinforcing imposing lockdown in pockets which are hotspots.