Telangana and Andhra ready with roadmap to lift lockdown

Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao used to be very strict on the issue of lockdown. Even when the Centre gave some relaxations, the state government denied them to its people and implemented the lockdown in letter and spirit. But suddenly KCR seems to have changed his strategy as there is a decline in Covid-19 cases in the state. On Monday, only two cases were recorded in Telangana and 21 districts became corona-free. The Chief minister himself told that the state would be corona-free by 8 May. “More than 60% of Telangana is free of Covid-19. The rate of recovery is 97%. New cases and containment zones are decreasing. In the coming days, restrictions will be lifted as the cases reduce,” the CM said. The ruling TRS party is toeing the government’s line, due to pressure from the public.

Sridhar Rao, a noted intellectual related to the TRS, said: “Due to continuous lockdown, people are vexed and many have lost their livelihood. KCR follows Modi’s strategy. Lockdown lifting is a worldwide phenomenon. Lockdown for months together is not good for economy too. The migrant labour and poor have been facing a lot of trouble. Why should we trouble the people in Green Zone?” Rao also called for resumption of inter-district public transport in the state. It, however, needs to be understood that lesser number of Covid-19 tests are currently being done in Telangana. On Monday when two persons tested corona-positive, only 159 samples were tested.

The CM said that the quarantine period for most of those found infected will end on 8 May. In the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, too, there is growing support for lifting of lockdown. Andhra CM Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy said that the normal life must commence in Green Zone. He explained that the government has clear vision about Green, Orange and Red Zones after the video-conference with the PM. He added that industrial activity must come to normalcy in areas falling under Green Zone, apart from the state’s agricultural sector. Jaganmohan Reddy said, “We will have to live with corona. We cannot stop virus completely. It’s not a scary thing… It’s like other contagious diseases like chickenpox or swine flu. Andhra is testing highest number of samples.” So, one can conclude that both Telangana and Andhra CMs are in favour of lifting the lockdown, especially in areas falling under Green Zone. It seems the strategy to lift the lockdown is already in place in the two states.