Coronavirus India Lockdown: An economic package to help migrants, small and medium industries and to help revive consumption is also on the government’s to-do list.
New Delhi, May 11:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will interact with Chief Ministers today in the fifth such virtual meet on the coronavirus crisis. The discussions will revolve around a plan for life after May 17, when the nationwide lockdown is due to end after its second extension. Today’s meeting, set to start at 3 pm, will go on “till proceedings continue”, say officials. Yesterday, the government took a major step by allowing limited passenger train services from Tuesday, for which online bookings start today. Special trains (total of 30 journeys) will run between Delhi and 14 states.
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One of the many firsts in today’s meeting is that all Chief Ministers will get to speak. In previous meetings, not all were slotted to speak.
The crisis for thousands of migrants, stranded because of the lockdown since March-end, will also be a key point of discussion.
Migrants left jobless and without food or shelter walking home thousands of kilometres away has been one of the most compelling sights during the shutdown.
Even after special trains started running from states to take migrants, students and others home, the desperation has not ended for many.
An economic package to help migrants, small and medium industries and to help revive consumption is also on the government’s to-do list.
The chief ministers are expected to push for stepping up economic activities in a calibrated manner, as the centre weighs a graded exit from the 54-day lockdown. At a meeting on Sunday, state Chief Secretaries told Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba that while protection is required from COVID-19, economic activities need to be stepped up.
States have demanded that in case of a graded exit from the lockdown based on red, orange and green zones, the state administration be allowed to decide where restrictions can be eased.
Amid a spike in COVID-19 cases in states like Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, exiting the lockdown will be a tough call.
Though the number of cases showed the biggest jump on Monday, India also has a significantly improved recovery rate of 31 per cent.
This morning, the number of coronavirus patients is 67,152 with 4,213 new cases in the last 24 hours. The recovery rate stood at 31.14 per cent this morning, a significant improvement over 26.59 per cent registered last Sunday.
