Lockdown extension likely as PM Modi talks of ‘national emergency’

NEW DELHI: PM Narendra Modi on Wednesday made it virtually clear that the three-week countrywide lockdown will be extended beyond April 14, and said the outbreak of the pandemic had created a national emergency which may require more tough measures to enforce social distancing.

“I have been talking to chief ministers and the feedback from them and the district magistrates who are being consulted is unanimous that lifting the lockdown all at once is not advisable. I will talk to CMs again. But the sense as of now is clear that lifting the lockdown is not going to be possible. We have to take tough measures to enforce social distancing,” the PM was heard saying in a leaked audio clip of his comments at an interaction through video link with representatives of political parties. The PMO took strong exception to the leak, a first, of the clip but did not dispute the veracity of Modi’s purported comments where he said the situation in the country was similar to “national emergency”.

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PM Modi said, “We are passing through a situation which is like that of national emergency and which

has forced us to take unprecedented measures from time to time. Your response to such measures has been positive in keeping with requirements of national interest. We have to take more tough measures”

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Speaking against the backdrop of a debate over the tradeoff between c