We need to let people go back to work, Shashi Tharoor said (File)
The lockdown could not stem the rapid growth of coronavirus cases in Thiruvananthapuram; thus, people should be allowed to return to work, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor tweeted on Monday.
"Spoke to Kerala Chief Secretary Vishwas Mehta to convey my concerns about reports of extended lockdown in Thiruvananthapuram. Many constituents point out that 3 wks lockdown have not slowed the spread of COVID-19. We need to let people go back to work to balance lives and livelihoods," he tweeted.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today said a committee will explore any scope of relaxing the lockdown rules.
"Due to serious conditions, there is a lockdown in Thiruvananthapuram. A committee led by Chief Secretary will look into the guidelines and issues on giving relaxations" he said.
The number of COVID-19 clusters in the corporation area of the city has also seen an increase, health officials say.
Kerala reported 702 new COVID-19 cases in the previous 24 hours. The doubling rate for COVID-19 in the state is around 13 days compared to 24 days in the beginning of the month.
Kerala's total of cases touched 19,727, including 63 deaths. As many as 9611 people are presently under treatment, 10,049 patients have recovered and over 1.55 lakh people are under observation, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters.
Of the total positive cases today in Kerala, 483 were infected through contact while the source of infection of 35 people are not yet known.
Thiruvananthapuram, the state capital, reported the highest number of cases - 161. The city is under a strict lockdown till July 28.
Earlier this month, Mr Vijayan had said some areas of Thiruvananthapuram were experiencing community transmission.
"The situation is very serious in some parts of coastal Thiruvananthapuram, where the spread has been fast. Community spread is happening in areas like Pullivula, Poonthura," he had said.
India on Monday reported nearly 50,000 coronavirus cases, which took the total of those infected past 14 lakh.