Chandigarh: The Punjab government on Friday (April 10) extended the coronavirus lockdown till May 1, becoming the second state after Odisha to do so. The decision was taken at a meeting of the council of ministers here today.
"PUNJAB CABINET @capt_amarinder UNANIMOUSLY APPROVES EXTENSION OF PUNJAB CURFEW/ LOCKDOWN till 30 April, 2020/1st May, 2020. Extension by 21 days from today. Strict enforcement (sic)," Special Chief Secretary KBS Sidhu tweeted.
Punjab has seen a spike in the number of coronavirus cases in the past few days, pushing the total count to 132 so far with 11 deaths.
"Punjab cabinet led by Captain Amarinder Singh decides to extend lockdown/curfew in the state till May 1, 2020," tweeted Raveen Thukral, Media Advisor to Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh.
Earlier in the day, during a video conference with the media, hosted by the AICC from New Delhi, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh indicated that his government was seriously thinking of extending the lockdown as the time did not appear to be right for lifting the ongoing restrictions.
He also said the government was looking for ways to extricate the state from the restrictions and enable it to function with the coronavirus around.
A high-powered committee with several doctors, medical and other experts, was examining the situation and will soon submit its report on the lockdown exit strategy, the Chief Minister said.
On April 9, after a state cabinet meeting, the Odisha Government extended the COVID-19 lockdown till April 30, becoming the first state to do so.
The 21-day lockdown announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month to contain the spread of novel coronavirus will end on April 14.
