Kerala says curbs can be relaxed in areas with no cases after May 15.
Kerala would prefer a partial lockdown to continue till May 15, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijyan said on Monday in a list of suggestions made to central government after a call from Home Minister Amit Shah and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's video conference with Chief Ministers.
"The state would prefer having a partial lockdown till May 15 and then review the situation based on the COVID-19 status prevalent at that time. The state is of the opinion that in districts where no cases are reported in the previous week of May 15, relaxations on public movement and public transport can be partially allowed by adhering to all safety precautions. Inter-district and inter-state traffic should be regulated till May 15," the Chief Minister told the media.
The nationwide COVID-19 lockdown, that began on March 25 is set to expire on May 3. In the meeting on Monday, PM Modi indicated that the government will extend the curbs in red zones which have reported a high number of cases while they will be relaxed in areas where the disease appears to be fading out.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has also sought the intervention of the centre with providing airfares or tickets for expats with low income jobs stranded abroad, or those who have lost jobs. In last 24 hours, over 2 lakh expats have registered with the state's Department of Non Resident Keralites Affairs, expressing their intent to return amid this global health crisis.
Pinarayi Vijayan has also said that measures will be taken to bring back Malayalis who are stranded in different states of the India and want to return.
Kerala has a total of 481 positive cases of which 123 patients are under treatment in various hospitals. On Monday, 13 new people tested positive and two districts - Kottayam and Idukki - have been declared as red zones. These two districts were the first to be declared as green zones, but with increasing cases, were marked as orange zones earlier.
Kerala has begun random tests among various front line groups that have mass contacts - including health care workers and migrant workers. On Sunday, 3,056 samples were sent for testing, including 875 samples from people in high-risk groups. Of these, 611 samples have so far tested negative.