Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday appealed to people in the state not to be lax in the measures against Covid-19, and to follow safety protocols to avoid another lockdown, reported PTI. The chief minister said that he had been advised to impose night curfew, but added that he did not believe that will help with the situation.
“The spiralling cases in Delhi is a cause of concern and there is night curfew in Ahmedabad,” Thackeray said during a virtual address. “I don’t want another lockdown, but you should also understand the gravity of the situation. We’re standing at a dangerous turn. We have to decide whether we want to go for a lockdown or follow all the mandatory Covid-19 safety protocols.”
The chief minister also thanked the people for celebrating the festival of Diwali without firecrackers. But he added that people should avoid movement unnecessarily, and wear a mask and maintain physical distancing. “It is really sad that people whom we had protected all these months, get infected due to the younger members in the family,” he added.
Thackeray added that there was still no clarity on the availability of vaccines and medicines for Covid-19, and said that till then there was no option but to follow other safety protocols. Side-effects after recovering from Covid-19 are severe and can be seen affecting the brain, kidney, lungs and other organs, he said.
The “second and third wave” is as strong as a tsunami, the Maharashtra chief minister said. “The vaccine is still not out, and we don’t know when it will come out,” he said, according to NDTV. “Even if it comes out in December, then when will it come to Maharashtra? Maharashtra has 12 crore people. And it needs to be given twice. So, we will need vaccine for 25 crore people.”
Maharashtra, which continues to be the most-affected state, has managed to reduce its caseload. It is the only state in the top five most-hit list to have been able to bring down its active cases. There are 80,878 active cases, 16,47,004 recoveries, and the toll stood at 46,573, according to the Union health ministry.
Earlier this month, reports said that the Maharashtra government was considering halting train and flight services between Mumbai and Delhi in view of the sharp rise in the number of coronavirus cases in the national Capital.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!