MHA rules out national lockdown, urges implementation of containment measures till May 31

As states and UTs begin to enforce stricter lockdowns and curfews, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Thursday extended the guideline directives till May 31, urging governments to strictly adhere to containment measures amid rising cases of COVID-19. By extending the guideline directives, the MHA has ruled out a pan-India lockdown like the one that was witnessed during the first wave of Coronavirus in 2020.

"In an order issued today, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) directed all States and Union Territories (UTs) to consider the containment measures, as had been conveyed in the advisory of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), dated 25.4.2021, for immediate implementation based on the assessment of the situation. It asked the States and UTs to implement the necessary containment measures, under the relevant provisions of the Disaster Management (/topic/disaster-management) (DM) Act, 2005," MHA said in a press release.

As per the latest Health Ministry advisory, states and UTs have been directed to identify districts where the COVID-19 tests positivity had been more than 10 per cent in the last week. States have also been asked to identify areas where bed occupancy was more than 60 percent. If any district fulfills either of the two criteria, the Home Ministry has suggested the application of local containment measures in the district. 

"The implementation framework for community containment/ large containment areas, as advised by MoHFW, has also been enclosed," read the MHA order. 

India reported 3,79,257 fresh cases of Coronavirus on Wednesday which took the total tally of cases in India to 1,83,76,524. As of April 29, there are 30,84,814 active cases in the country which has witnessed 2,69,507 recoveries and 3,645 deaths in the last 24 hours. 

(With Agency Inputs)