U-Turn On Lockdown: Now Maharashtra Government Says Final Decision To Lift Restrictions Not Yet Finalized

Mihir Shete 

Mumbai, 3rd June 2021: In quite a turn of events, the Maharashtra government has clarified that phased unlocking is not yet finalized. Earlier this evening, State Minister for Relief and Rehabilitation Vijay Wadettiwar held a press conference and announced the unlocking of Maharashtra in five phases.

He also mentioned categorized districts in the state. According to the announcement, the implementation was supposed to start from tomorrow, i.e. Friday, June 4.

However, the state government has since clarified that the decision has not been taken yet. “Corona infection is still not completely eradicated. Infection is still on the rise in rural areas of some districts. Therefore, restrictions have not been lifted yet,” the state health ministry said in a statement.

Earlier, minister Wadettiwar said that the Disaster Management Department has decided on a five-phase withdrawal of the lockdown depending on the weekly review of positivity rate and occupancy of oxygen beds. Detailed guidelines were to be issued later. However, the government has now done a U-turn on the issue.

“We will review the situation in various districts and then decide on relaxations or more restrictions in lockdown measures”, the government statement reads.

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