Lockdown 2021: As the Centre asserted that the coronavirus situation is stabilising, several states and UTs begin mulling gradual unlocking and resumption of economic activities. Yesterday, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal announced that the national capital which has been under strict lockdown since April 15 due to the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic will be unlocked phase-wise from Monday (May 31). Addressing a virtual presser, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said it has been over a month that Delhi has been under lockdown and people supported it as well, and now the time has come when the process of unlocking will start from next week. “With keeping eyes on the Covid situation, we have to look into economic activities also, as many poor families have already suffered a lot due to lockdown. Hence, from Monday, two activities will be open – construction and factories. We will take further decisions considering the Covid situation in Delhi,” Kejriwal stated.
If reports are to be believed, the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh is also planning to gradually lift the lockdown or corona curfew that has been imposed in the state since April 30. Earlier Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had also hinted at relaxing the restrictions in the state beginning from June 1. Sharing a post on Facebook for the people of the state, the MP CM said, “Lockdown will be lifted in a scientific way from June 1. The government has prepared a roadmap for this. We don’t have to leave the house suddenly or organize big events. This could make the situation worse. We have suffered a lot. Many people have lost their lives”.
However, there are some states which have extended lockdown beyond June 1. Take a look at state-wise details here.
Maharashtra: The Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government has extended lockdown for 15 more days after reviewing the situation in the state. Announcing the decision, health minister Rajesh Tope said that a fresh set of guidelines will be issued on June 1. “As far as lockdown is concerned, 15 days’ extension has been given, but the guidelines related to it will be issued on June 1,” Tope said. He clearly stated that no relaxation will be given in the areas where the number of patients and positivity rate are still high.
Rajasthan: The Rajasthan government has extended the coronavirus lockdown till June 8. The Ashok Gehlot-led state government has also said the state may allow some relaxations in commercial activities from June 1 in districts where the COVID-19 situation will show significant improvement.
Punjab: Punjab government has extended the lockdown in the state till June 10. However, in view of the decline in positive as well as active cases the restriction on the number of passengers in personal vehicles has been lifted.
Himachal Pradesh: To combat the further spread of coronavirus, Himachal Pradesh has extended lockdown in the state till 6 am of June 7. However, the state government has decided to provide a few relaxations like the opening of all shops and other establishments from Monday to Friday for five hours from 9 am to 2 pm. This decision will be effective from 6 am on May 31 till 6 am on June 7.
Nagaland: Similarly, Nagaland has also extended the lockdown-like restrictions till June 11. The decision to further extend the lockdown was taken by the High Powered Committee (HPC) on Covid-19, headed by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio.
West Bengal: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has extended the ongoing Covid-19 restrictions till June 15, saying that the curbs have helped ease the pandemic situation a little. The West Bengal government had announced the existing restrictions for 15 days from May 16 following a huge surge in the number of coronavirus cases. The announcement for extension of the curbs came three days before they were scheduled to come to an end.
Tamil Nadu: The state-wide lockdown without relaxations to help break the chain of COVID-19 transmission has been extended till June 7 by one more week, Chief Minister M K Stalin announced yesterday. He said the move was done considering public good to rein in the pandemic spread and appealed to the people to cooperate with the government and stay indoors.