Lockdown extended till May 3, easing of curbs only after assessment: Modi

Stressing that social distancing and lockdown have proved to be the most effective ways to fight COVID-19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday (April 14) announced the extension of the nationwide lockdown till May 3.

“After discussions with states and citizens we have arrived at the unanimous decision to extend the lockdown,” Modi said in his 10 am televised address to the nation.

He said the implementation of the lockdown will be strictly ensured in the coming days to ensure that the virus does not spread to new areas. A detailed guideline on implementation of the new lockdown will be announced on Wednesday (April 15).

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The prime minister said the government till April 20 will review how different states are handling the disease and take a call on further steps accordingly. “Restricted activities will be allowed from April 30 in regions which do not show the emergence of any hotspots,” he said.

“Follow the rules of lockdown with full devotion till May 3, stay where you are, stay safe,” he added.

The prime minister said some relaxation may be allowed in some areas and the scope of coronavirus testing will be expanded significantly.

“Till April 20, every town, every police station, every district, every state will be tested on how much they are adhering to the lockdown; how much the areas have protected themselves from coronavirus. It will be observed. Some necessary activities may be allowed in areas that will pass this litmus test; areas which will not be among the hotspots and are less likely to turn into hotspots,” he said.

Stating that the road ahead was difficult, Modi said that it, however, was the right way to deal with the pandemic and that India has fared better than many developed countries due to its holistic approach. “If India had not taken an integrated approach towards handling the disease, we don’t know in what state we would have been,” he said.

He said India received huge benefits from the 21-day lockdown in checking the pandemic with limited resources.

Hinting at the economic price of the lockdown, Modi said, “it is expensive, we have to pay a huge price, but it is nothing compared to the lives of Indians.”

The prime minister assured people that the country has enough stock – from medicines to ration, and that the government is streamlining the supply chain to make life easier for citizens.

At the end of his speech Modi asked people to do ensure seven things during the lockdown including taking special care of the elderly, helping poor families and seeing if they are fed well and respecting health workers, police and sanitary workers among others who are working 24*7 in the fight against coronavirus. He also urged companies not to lay off employees over losses due to the COVID-19 situation.

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In his meeting with 13 chief ministers on Saturday, the prime minister was requested to extend the lockdown to contain the disease which has infected more than 10,363 people and caused 339 deaths so far.

The states of Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Punjab and Telangana have already extended their lockdown till April 30. Puducherry, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Mizoram have extended the lockdown with partial restrictions.

As many as 51 deaths, the highest so far have been reported in the past 24 hours. The health ministry, however, has said that there have been no cases for 14 days in 25 districts of 15 states.

The lockdown that came into effect on March 25 was to expire on midnight of April 14. The drastic measure shone the spotlight on the miseries of lakhs of migrant workers whose journeys on foot from several urban centres to their villages hundreds of kilometres away grabbed headlines for many days last month.

The catastrophic effect of the lockdown on the overall economy and livelihoods of lakhs of migrant workers triggered severe concerns following which a number of chief ministers in their video conference with Modi on Saturday sought some kind of relaxation for a number of sectors. Late last month, the government announced a ₹1.7 lakh crore package aimed at providing relief to those hit hard by the lockdown as well as an insurance cover for healthcare professionals handling virus infected people.

(With inputs from agencies)