Kolkata: While Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced a 21-day lockdown in the country to combat the deadly coronavirus outbreak, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Friday that her government would hold a review on March 31 and “take a decision if the situation does not change”.
“On March 31, we will hold a review. If the situation does not change, we will take a decision then,” Banerjee told mediapersons.
Banerjee recalled that the Central government has declared the lockdown till April 15, but reiterated: “We will review it on March 31”.
As part of the measures to contain the spread of the dreaded virus, Modi had called for a 14-hour Janata Curfew on March 22, and hours before it ended the Centre called for a lockdown from March 23 to 31 in 75 districts of the country, including Kolkata and North 24 Parganas.
However, the states were given the liberty to add more areas to the lockdown as per their assessment.
The Mamata Banerjee government ordered complete lockdown in Kolkata and eight districts and municipal and district towns besides some rural areas in other parts of the state from 5 p.m. on March 23.
But veering from the Centre’s advice to maintain the lockdown till March 31, it decided to continue it up to March 27 midnight.
Two days later, the Bengal govenrment extended the lockdown to the entire state up to March 31.
But within hours, Modi in a televised address announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown.
Meanwhile, the Chief Minister said the state has received 5,000 thermal guns and has placed orders for 5,000 more, while it is also getting 10,000 litres of hand sanitisers daily from its small scale industry arms for use by health workers.
Banerjee said the government is looking for dedicated volunteers with experience of working in the health sector to involve them in emergency duties.
The government has also decided to recruit local youths in areas where it did not have adequate manpower. “We will pay them Rs 250 daily for maintaining essential services and various health related works.”
She said testing for coronavirus will begin from Sunday at the North Bengal Medical College which will be of great benefit to the people of the region.
The Chief Minister, who has visited local markets over the past couple of days stressing on social distancing, said that rural markets should also ensure social distancing.
“We earmarked spots by drawing circles to denote where people should stand in queues before shops and vegetable vendors’ stalls in Kolkata. The same should be done in the villages,” Banerjee said.
To help senior citizens, the state government has decided to pay them two months’ pension in advance to cope with the current situation.