The central government is now contemplating extension of the lockdown which was to end on 14th April 2020 after several state governments and experts put in the request, said government sources to public broadcaster Prasar Bharati. On Tuesday, 24 March 2020, Prime Minister Modi in his address to nation had announced a three-week lockdown across the nation in wake of Chinese coronavirus outbreak.
Breaking – A lot of state governments as well as experts are requesting Central Government to extend the lockdown. Central Government is thinking in this direction: Government sources.
— Prasar Bharati News Services (@PBNS_India) April 7, 2020
The Union Health Ministry in its press briefing today said that the central government is in constant touch with the state governments and depending on the situation, the union will take a decision regarding extension of the lockdown. As of now, no decision regarding extension is taken.
Following the lockdown, the states had also sealed borders in a bid to contain the spread of Chinese coronavirus. However, Delhi government-run buses took migrant workers from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to the Delhi-UP border and left them on their own allegedly with the promise that the UP state government buses will take them home. This was after the state governments had suspended public and commercial transport. On humanitarian grounds, the UP government later sent buses to pick up the stranded migrant workers and took them to quarantine facilities and their desired destinations.
Now, as we enter the third week of lockdown, more cases have emerged after the Tablighi Jamaat attendees at Delhi’s Nizamuddin have emerged as superspreaders taking the virus to other parts of the country. In light of this, it seems, that the state governments and experts seem to have recommended an extension of lockdown so that further spread of the contagion is controlled.
