Lockdown till May 7: CM KCR hints further extension depending on situation

Hyderabad: The Government of Telangana State has decided to extend the lockdown till May 7. It does not rule out the possibility of further extension depending upon the situation in the country and the State, Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao said here on Sunday.

Briefing media after six-hour Cabinet meeting, the Chief Minister said that about 94 per cent of the people and various surveys favoured further extension of lockdown if need be.

The situation in Telangana was coming under control but to ensure that there is no relapse it is necessary to continue the lockdown strictly. The Government hopes that the situation would become normal by May 1, he said.

The CM asked the people across the country not to fly to Hyderabad till May 7 even if air services were restored as there will be no cabs and other services.

Services like Big Basket which supplies groceries, fruits and vegetables is allowed to operate but food suppliers like Swiggy and Zomato services have been banned. No functions will be permitted at least till May end, he said.

The State Cabinet also issued orders to all house owners to defer collection of house rents for the months of March, April and May. KCR said it was not an appeal it is an order under the Disaster Management Act and no interest should be charged on deferred payment.

Similarly, the property tax for 2019-20 period has also been given relaxation. They can pay till May end without penalty, the Chief Minister said.

The government also ordered all private educational institutions that fees cannot be hiked and no other fees other than tuition fee should be collected and that too month wise and not in one go. If anyone violates parents can dial 100 and immediate action will be taken, he said.

Since the time for paying salaries is coming up soon, the government will follow the same pattern. However, in case of pensioners, 75 per cent will be paid.

The 10 per cent incentive for medical and sanitary staff will continue. This time the police will also be given 10 per cent incentive. Another decision taken by the Cabinet is to pay 100 per cent salary to power employees which consists of operation and maintenance, and artisans.

As far as industries are concerned, the government has decided to defer the payment of fixed power charges. It can be paid later in instalments without penalty.

The companies like pharma units and rice mills will get 1 per cent rebate if they pay bills in time.

The Chief Minister said thanks to the effective implementation of the lockdown and effective services of doctors, police and sanitation workers, Telangana has registered death rate of 2.44 per cent which was lower than national average of 3.22 per cent.

In terms of conducting tests while in India the average was 254 tests per million population, in Telangana it is 375 per million which is higher than the national average.

He said the brighter side is that to date 858 positive cases were recorded which includes 18 cases on Sunday.

So far 186 have been cured and discharged, and only 21 deaths have been reported and 651 are under treatment and their condition was stable.

KCR said four districts Warangal rural, Yadadri district, Siddipet and Wanaparthy have become zero case districts.