The Congress, an ally of the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) dispensation, on Thursday demanded that the state government reimpose total lockdown restrictions in view of the spike in new Covid-19 cases.
Nearly 50 per cent of the Covid-19 cases reported in Jharkhand to date surfaced in the first 11 days of June, when the government decided to offer major relaxations from lockdown curbs in what the Centre called Unlock 1.0.
Issuing an official statement, Congress spokesperson Alok Dubey said: “The lockdown is the only solution considering the rise in Covid-19 cases in Jharkhand.”
He claimed that even the general public too believed so. “The public now feels that a rerun of the lockdown can help the government tackle the situation and prevent further spread of the pandemic. The Union government had imposed the lockdown after a notice of a mere four hours, causing chaos; the state government, however, should now take a time-bound decision by giving sufficient time to the public for preparing before announcing curbs,” he added.
There is also a great deal of buzz within the power corridors surrounding the lockdown. A bureaucrat, on condition of anonymity, said: “The government is exploring various options. The Supreme Court has asked all states to ensure the return of migrants by June 15. Hence, the government will take an appropriate call after the deadline.”
“We have already allowed restricted relaxations during Unlock 1.0. The government may reverse it till June 30, if need be. Nothing is finalised.”
While announcing norms for Unlock 1.0 on June 1, chief minister Hemant Soren had hinted at resorting to lockdown restrictions if the situation warrants it. Talking to reporters, he had said: “Relaxations won’t mean that it will be final. We will roll back if situation go out of hand and cases pile up.”