Maharashtra Congress minister announces end to lockdown, govt says still mulling plan

MUMBAI: A sudden announcement on Thursday by a Maharashtra minister declaring an immediate end to the lockdown in the country’s most Covid-affected state and phase-wise resumption of all activities threw the administration into turmoil and prompted the government to issue a carefully worded denial that said the move was still under consideration.

Congress leader and relief and rehabilitation minister Vijay Wadettiwar, not unaccustomed to premature declarations, stirred a controversy by saying that a decision was taken by the state disaster management authority (SDMA) to unlock based on the steady decline in Covid infections. Districts/municipal corporations would be graded at five levels for opening up, he said, based on positivity rate and occupancy of oxygenated beds.
Wadettiwar said 43 districts and municipal corporations each with over 10 lakh population had been graded ( see graphic ). Those with less than 5% positivity rate and oxygen bed occupancy below 25%—including Thane, Nagpur and Aurangabad—would be totally opened up, he added. Areas with a positivity rate of 5% or more and bed occupancy of 25-40%—including Mumbai—are at Level 2.
Wadettiwar indicated that places at Level 1 would benefit from a complete opening-up.
Minister’s decision to ‘end’ lockdown brings forth denial from info department
Relief and rehabilitation minister Vijay Wadettiwar’s announcement that the lockdown would be lifted starting this weekend in a graded manner came without the knowledge or sanction of chief minister Uddhav Thackeray. His announcement drew positive responses from sectors reeling under the financial impact of the lockdown, but there was consternation in government circles.
Soon after the news reached the official residence of the CM, a denial came from the Directorate General of Information and Public Relations, saying no such decision had been taken and that the proposal of the relief and rehabilitation department was still under consideration by the CMO.
According to sources, Thackeray was unhappy over the manner in which Wadettiwar unveiled the plan without consulting the CMO or the chief secretary. “We have drafted a plan for lifting the lockdown in a graded manner, we have prepared five levels for the purpose. There is a scientific basis to the plan and it is apolitical. In our view, Wadettiwar exceeded his brief. Before making the announcement, he should have consulted the CM. If we lift the lockdown completely, there will be chaos across the state and the day will not be far off, when there will be a massive surge in cases,” a senior bureaucrat said.
Senior bureaucrats said senior ministers of the MVA were vying with each other to reach out to the media even before a final decision was taken on sensitive matters. They said the trend was causing some embarrassment to the government.
Wadettiwar who earlier in the day had said the implementation of the relaxations would begin from Friday, later deferred to protocol and clarified that the proposal had been approved in-principle. A final order will have to be issued by the CM for the implementation of the plan in a phase-wise manner, he said.
Not surprisingly, Wadettiwar blamed the media for beaming his statements.
“The media showed it in such a way that (it seemed) the entire state will be unlocked, which led to confusion. In areas where cases are going down we will need to give them relaxations," the minister said.
According to the plan shared by the minister, a weekly review will be undertaken and depending on the positivity rate and bed occupancy, districts will be raised or lowered in ranking and sectors opened or shut accordingly. The requirement of Rt-PCR negative reports for travel within the state may also be waived, except for an e-pass which may be needed in districts with high positivity. And people entering from other states will still require a negative report.