States plan guidelines for Phase 4

nNEW DELHI: Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu announced on Sunday the extension of the lockdown till the end of May while most Bharatiya Janata Party (Bjp)-ruled states such as Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh said they would follow the Centre’s guidelines on the extension.

Karnataka, on the other hand, decided to extend the lockdown only till the midnight of May 19, while following the norms of the third lockdown, according to a notification issued by chief secretary TM Vijay Bhaskar.

Some states such as Delhi, Gujarat, West Bengal, Goa and Jharkhand said they would announce norms for the fourth phase of lockdown on Monday.

On Tuesday, most chief ministers had told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that there was a need for an entension, especially in Covid-19 containment areas and clusters. Modi had told them that new guidelines would be issued before May 18 and states would get more powers to enforce it.

Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami spoke certain relaxations in some districts.

UP chief secretary RK Tiwari said the lockdown has been extended till May 31. “We will release our guidelines after studying the Centre’s ,” he said.

Jharkhand’s director, information and public relation department, Rajiv Lochan said, “A meeting of secretaries was called at 9pm to review the guidelines issued by the Centre. I think the final decision will be announced on Monday.”

The West Bengal home department tweeted on Sunday afternoon that the state will notify a “comprehensive plan” on Monday afternoon.

Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani announced that all industries in non-containment zones will start from Monday. “Relaxation will increase in the orange and green zones. Buses will also resume in non-containment zones and auto-rickshaw drivers will be given concessions in some areas,” Rupani said.