Rajesh Tope said he met Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray two days ago
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said people must follow COVID-19 safety protocols if the state is to avoid another lockdown. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was of the view that lockdown may become necessary in some cities if the new cases continue to climb, Mr Tope told reporters.
At the same time, he also defended the state's response to rising cases and pointed out that in terms of cases per million population, many states have fared worse.
He met the Chief Minister two days ago, Mr Tope said.
"He told me that if the number of daily cases in the state remains in the range of 25,000 to 30,000 for the next some days, then we will have to take some stringent steps. He is of the opinion that if the numbers continue to increase, we will have to impose lockdown in some cities," the minister said.
"I appeal people to respond to CM's warning (about possibility of lockdown) positively and follow the COVID-19 protocols such as mask wearing, hand hygiene and physical distancing to avoid lockdown," Mr Tope said.
He also said that the Centre has told the states that the gap between two shots of Covishield vaccine will be 45 to 60 days instead of the present 28 days. The gap between doses of Covaxin will be same as earlier, that is 28 days.
He has discussed the latest surge in cases with epidemiologists, the health minister said.