Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba had also denied such reports this morning. “”I’m surprised to see such reports, there is no such plan of extending the lockdown,” the government’s top bureaucrat was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
New Delhi:
“Rumours and media reports” that the 21-day lockdown to check the spread of coronavirus will be extended are “baseless”, the government asserted on Monday. A report had claimed that the government was debating extending the lockdown, alarmed over the infection risk posed by the mass exodus of migrants trying to reach home, desperate for food and shelter.
“There are rumours and media reports, claiming that the government will extend the #Lockdown21 when it expires. The Cabinet Secretary has denied these reports, and stated that they are baseless,” tweeted the Press Information Bureau, the government’s media body, with the hashtag #PIBFactCheck. State-run broadcaster Prasar Bharti also put out a denial, called it “fake news”.
“I’m surprised to see such reports, there is no such plan of extending the lockdown,” Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba, the government’s top bureaucrat, was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
Top government sources say in the coming week they will be able to make a fair assessment of the situation and identify and isolate areas if any, to ensure there is a coordinated approach to deal with the highly infectious disease.
The national lockdown that started last Tuesday will end on April 14.
