Maha plans aid for poor, lockdown

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government again held marathon meetings on Monday as it readied the plan for another Covidinduced lockdown in one of the worst hit states. According to officials familiar with the matter, the state government is expected to make an announcement about the lockdown on April 14, after a cabinet meeting, and begin its implementation from the evening of April 15.

The state recorded 51,751 new cases on Monday, taking its overall tally of cases to 3,458,996; 258 people died from Covid-19.

State public health minister Rajesh Tope said that the lockdown is inevitable, but the state government was tapping the ways to reduce its impact. “We held a couple of meetings with various departments on Monday... We want to make sure that the people from the lower strata are not impacted. Besides the food, the period will also be utilised for the augmentation of the health infrastructure,” he said, adding that the people will be given ample time to prepare for the lockdown.

According to the officials from the finance department, a relief package to help the economically weaker sections during the lockdown is in its final stages. “Foodgrains including rice and pulses were distributed through PDS during the last lockdown until November last year under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana. 2.5 million metric tonne rice was distributed to about 16 million ration card holders. In the absence of the central scheme, the state government will have to launch its own scheme... Similarly, its ongoing Shiv Bhojan Thali, distributed in ₹5, will have to be extended to a large extent. All these schemes will be part of the package,” the official said.

An official from the relief and rehabilitation department said the state government has started preparing SOPs for the lockdown, which are expected to be finalised in a day or two.