Let normal life resume with precautions, says Shashi Tharoor

Even as a panel headed by the chief secretary was set to take a decision on extending the lockdown in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday, public representatives and experts said that a complete lockdown was not needed.

Thiruvananthapuram Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said he spoke to Kerala Chief Secretary Vishwas Mehta to convey his concerns about reports of extended lockdown in Thiruvananthapuram.

"Many constituents point out that three weeks lockdown has not slowed the spread of COVID-19. We need to let people go back to work to balance lives and livelihoods," he said.

Tharoor said specific and limited containment zones will still be necessary for certain areas. "But people must be allowed to resume normal lives with masks and all due precautions," he said.

The Indian Medical Association also said that the current situation doesn't call for a complete lockdown. "Strict preventive measures can be put in place in containment zones and hotspots rather than a complete lockdown. Also, the number of COVID-19 tests should be increased. If the cases start to spread from COVID-19 containment zones and hot spots, a total lockdown could be an option but not at this point, " said Dr Sulfi M Noohu, State secretary, Indian Medical Association.

At an all-party meeting, both the Congress and the BJP had opposed a complete lockdown in the state.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had termed the COVID situation in the state capital as "serious" and said that a panel headed by chief secretary had been asked to look into the issues and suggest if lockdown should be extended or any further relaxation should be given.
Currently, only shops selling essential items are allowed to open from 7 am to 12 noon and from 4 pm to 6 pm. The earlier deadline to end the lockdown was midnight today.

In Thiruvananthapuram, there are 2,723 COVID-19 patents of whom 11 people are in the ICU and one person is on the ventilator. There are seven large community clusters in the district.

Two deaths and 702 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Kerala on Monday. The total number of cases in the state now is 19,727. There are 495 COVID-19 hotspots in the state, the government said on Tuesday.

(ANI)

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