Mumbai and Pune likely to be under lockdown till May 15

“Since there is a rise in the number of cases in Mumbai and Pune, the state government is likely to extend the lockdown in these places till May 15,” said an official.

Meanwhile, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs late Friday amending guidelines, easing curbs on certain kinds of shops and markets in urban and rural areas, appears to have taken the state by surprise, days after it rolled back its earlier relaxations on the directives by a visiting team of central officials.

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The official said the new guidelines needed to be studied before the state takes any decision on how to implement them, and no immediate changes are being introduced on the basis of the amended notification. “We want to do it more carefully. No discussions have taken place yet,” he added.

Public Health Minister Rajesh Tope told The Indian Express that the extension of the lockdown in hotspot areas like Mumbai and Pune is under consideration. The decision will be taken after discussing all aspects, he added.
Of the two major cities, Mumbai accounts for the maximum number of COVID-19 cases in the country, while Pune on Saturday crossed the four-digit count.

Sources in the government said that the state is in favour of allowing most of the activities in rural areas, especially in green and orange zones, to resume from May 4. Sources added that while the lockdown was an important measure to flatten the curve, it was as important to allow economic activities to resume in areas that were not as badly affected as Mumbai and Pune. “We are in favour of allowing most of the activities and restoring normalcy in phases in rural parts of the state, especially in the green and orange zones, after May 3. We need to start economic activities gradually by taking proper precautions and maintaining social distancing norms,” said a senior minister.

The minister added that though economic activities in rural areas would resume, public transport services between districts may not be started. “The district borders are likely to remain sealed. So, the decision on public transport needs to be taken carefully,” he said.

A bureaucrat said the state may wait for the Union government’s notification on allowing public transport in rural areas or in green and orange zones.

Sources in the government said that Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray may raise issues like transportation of stranded labourers to their respective states, extension of lockdown in Mumbai and Pune and pending GST dues from Centre, in a video conference with his counterparts and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday.