THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Close on the heels of Centre laying down Unlock 1.0 guidelines, the Kerala government opted for a cautious approach and decided to wait for cues from the Union government on June 8 before opening up the state fully. Other than giving buses permission to hold services to neighbouring districts and providing conditional nod for cinema shooting, the lockdown review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan did not take any major decision.
E-pass system for inter-state travel will continue. Places of worship will remain inaccessible to public, so will the malls and cinema houses. Dining inside restaurants will not be allowed. No concrete decision was taken on restarting long-distance public transport as well. It was widely expected that the easing of restrictions will be played out differently in Kerala as states were given the freedom to allow or prohibit certain activities, as they deem fit, without watering down the Union government’s guidelines.
Addressing the media, Pinarayi said schools would be reopened in July or later after taking stock of the Covid situation. But containment zones will see full lockdown till June 30. The state will assess the relaxation to be allowed in the Unlock 2.0 before June 8.
“The Centre has made it clear that devotee gatherings in places of worship will not be allowed under any circumstance. So we are in no hurry to throw them open,” said Pinarayi.But a decision concurrent with the central guidelines would be taken at the right time, he said. “We will convene a meeting with religious leaders before conveying our position to the Centre,” he added.
State to use plasma treatment
T’Puram: The Health Department has decided to carry out the convalescent plasma treatment, a passive antibody therapy in which blood plasma is isolated from recovered persons and administered to the infected.
Train services to resume
The government has decided to allow resumption of train services within the state. It has also decided to not stipulate quarantining for the people who come to the state with return tickets to attend emergency cases, including those coming on flights.
210 die abroad so far
As many as 210 Keralites have lost their lives abroad due to Covid-19 till date, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Monday. According to him, nine lost their lives on Monday alone.