NITI Aayog member Dr VK Paul said that the Centre has already given guidelines to the state governments on sanctions to break the chain of infection.
The second wave of corona continues to wreak havoc in India with over 4 lakh cases being reported on a daily basis. This has led to the imposition of lockdown in at least 20 states in the country, however, the overall caseload is showing no signs of decline.
Meanwhile, as the virus mutates further, a third wave of COVID infection is inevitable and it is necessary to be prepared for new waves, the government's Principal Scientific Advisor K VijayRaghavan cautioned on Wednesday.
Amid all these, the demand for a nationwide lockdown is also intensifying. The Supreme Court has also asked the Central and state governments to consider lockdown to contain the spread of the virus.
When asked if the Centre will impose a nationwide lockdown like last year, NITI Aayog member (Health) Dr VK Paul in a health ministry press conference said that the Central Government has already given guidelines to the state governments on sanctions to break the chain of infection. He also said that if something else needs to be done in the near future, all its options can be discussed.
Dr VK Paul said that guidelines in this regard were issued in detail on April 29, which said that to stop transmission state governments have been advised night curfew in areas where the infection rate is more than 10 per cent. The state governments will take a decision. In addition, social, political, sports, religious mobilization are also completely prohibited.
Meanwhile, India on Thursday recorded a new high of 4,12,262 new Covid cases and 3,980 deaths, taking the country's tally to 2,10,77,410, according to the Union Health Ministry.
The top five states which have registered maximum cases are Maharashtra with 57,640 cases, followed by Karnataka with 50,112 cases, Kerala with 41,953 cases, Uttar Pradesh with 31,111 cases and Tamil Nadu with 23,310 cases.
Around 49.52 per cent of the new cases are reported from these five states, with Maharashtra alone contributing to 13.98 per cent of the new cases.
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