Lockdown may not end on May 31: Uddhav Thackeray

Mumbai, May 24

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said it was wrong to impose the lockdown suddenly and now it cannot be lifted all at once.

Amid the rising number of COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra, Thackeray also said there was a need to be extra cautious during the upcoming monsoon. The coronavirus-induced lockdown cannot be lifted even by May 31, he said

"It was wrong to impose the lockdown suddenly. It will be equally wrong to lift it in one go. It will be a double whammy for our own people," he said in a televised message.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a nationwide lockdown from March 24 midnight to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection. It was later extended, and currently, the fourth phase of lockdown, with some relaxations, is on and will continue till May 31.

Thackeray, whose party Shiv Sena parted ways with long-term ally BJP last year, said though the Union government has been of little help, he would not indulge in any political mudslinging.

"The Maharashtra government has not yet received its due GST amount. The Centres share of train ticket cost (for facilitating transportation of migrant labourers to their native places) is yet to be received. There is still a shortage of some medicines. Earlier, we did face a shortage of PPE kits and other equipment, he said. PTI