COVID Task Force demands lockdown in Maharashtra, Cabinet likely to take final decision on April 14

Customers, many not wearing their masks properly, throng Dadar vegetable market on Sunday. Pics/Atul Kamble

No total lockdown just yet. However, a final decision on imposing much stricter restrictions to contain the COVID-19 spread will be taken in the next couple of days. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray will hold a meeting with senior bureaucrats and state COVID Task Force and deliberate the matter with his Cabinet colleagues before making the final announcement.

A couple of men walk towards Lokmanya Tilak Terminus on Sunday

In a meeting with the CM on Sunday, COVID Task Force reiterated a need for a lockdown for 8-14 days to break the chain of transmission of Coronavirus, which is spreading rapidly in the city.

According to the Chief Minister's Office (CMO), a standard operating procedure (SOP) was being prepared based on the past experiences. "The people, who follow COVID-19 protocols and yet face a threat of getting infected because of the violators, want a lockdown to stop the spread of the virus. We are preparing an SOP in consultation with senior bureaucrats," read the CMO's statement.

Passengers headed to their respective hometowns wait for trains at Borivli railway station on Sunday. Pic/Satej Shinde

The CM will meet the Task Force again on Monday, and may also interact with the representatives of the commercial and business sectors. State Finance Minister Ajit Pawar is expected to prepare a plan to provide financial relief to those who would be affected by the total lockdown, like unorganised workers, retailers, traders, farmers and daily-wage labourers. He is expected to present the proposal during a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Thackeray took stock of the healthcare system and sought to know whether the lockdown should be for a week or 14 days. He reviewed the shortage of oxygen and beds, treatment protocol and augmentation of COVID-19 care infrastructure to serve the growing caseload. He wanted remdesivir to be used reasonably, and not being administered to those who don't need it. He also discussed fines for violations of lockdown rules.

As on Sunday, beds were not available in 11-12 districts of Maharashtra, health secretary Dr Pradeep Vyas said at the meeting. In Nandurbar, patients have been isolated in railway bogies. Across the state, 75 per cent of ICU beds are occupied, while 60 per cent oxygen beds were vacant. Between April 4 and April 10, the state registered 4 lakh new cases and 1,982 deaths, Vyas said.

14 days
Duration of lockdown task force has suggested

1,982
No. of deaths across the state from April 4-10