Telangana cabinet meet today, KCR may take a call on lockdown

HYDERABAD: Amid growing calls for imposition of lockdown to arrest the rapid surge in Covid-19 cases, the state cabinet is meeting on Tuesday afternoon to take a decision on the issue.
The cabinet meeting, to be chaired by chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, is likely to discuss Ramzan festival which falls on May 14 and likely impact on Eid-ul-Fitr if the lockdown is imposed.
There is speculation that if the government were to impose lockdown, it would come into force after Ramzan. Sources told TOI that despite pressure from different quarters, KCR is still hesitant about a complete lockdown. But a clear picture will emerge only after Tuesday's meeting.
The chief minister’s office (CMO) on Monday said: “There are reports which suggest that despite certain states imposing the lockdown there is no decrease in the positive cases. Against this backdrop, different opinions are emerging on the lockdown. Some sections are arguing in favour of imposition of lockdown. Under these circumstances, the state cabinet will discuss the pros and cons of the lockdown and also the adverse impact it may have on the ongoing procurement of paddy and take a decision.”
All the southern states, except Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, have already imposed a total lockdown for a few days.
While Telangana has been implementing the night curfew from 9 pm to 5 am for the past two weeks, AP had announced a partial lockdown from 12 noon to 6 am.
Just last week, KCR had ruled out imposition of lockdown in Telangana, saying it would affect the livelihoods of people and also impact revenues of the state. The CM also pointed out that despite clamping lockdown there was no improvement in the situation in several states as positive cases have not come down.
KCR said 25 lakh to 30 lakh workers’ lives will be at stake. “We have seen how their lives were adversely impacted by the lockdown in the first wave. If they are dislocated, they will not come back. Moreover, the state is having a bumper yield of paddy and 6,144 procurement centres are purchasing the grain. The entire paddy purchasing process will come to a standstill if lockdown is imposed,” he had said then.