Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday reportedly indicated that the current nationwide lockdown will continue beyond 3 May despite most chief ministers saying that this should end. Some reports quoted sources as saying that Modi had told chief ministers to devise plans for a phased-exit from the current lockdown.
Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy was quoted as saying, “The PM said that he wanted the views of the Chief Ministers on what strategy the States have to adopt after the lockdown period ends on 3rd May. Most of the CMs were unanimous in saying that the way in which the number of Corona cases were increasing in the country, there should be a cautious approach and the PM has to take a call on the basis of the observations given by the Chief Ministers.”
Narayanasamy said that ‘most of the CMs of BJP ruled states said that the lockdown should continue and economic activity should be slowly started.’
This was Modi’s fourth interaction with chief ministers since 22 March. Soon after his first meeting with chief ministers last month, the prime minister had announced a 21-day lockdown. He had extended the lockdown by another 19 days after holding a similar meeting with them.
There are concerns that the country’s economy will take a brutal hit if the lockdown doesn’t end on 3 May.
Meanwhile, India’s COVID-19 death toll jumped to 872 with the number of positive cases exceeding 26,000. The death toll in Gujarat rose to 151.