D V Sadananda Gowda joins clamour for Covid-19 lockdown in Karnataka

Union Minister D V Sadananda Gowda on Thursday favoured a Maharashtra-like lockdown in Karnataka, where Covid-19 cases touched the 50,000-mark in the highest single-day tally yesterday.

“Given the situation today, there’s a need to think about it seriously,” Gowda said, on the imposition of a full lockdown.

“In Maharashtra, because of a full lockdown, cases in Mumbai fell from 10,000 to 2,000. The Supreme Court has also observed that Mumbai-type lockdowns should be done in different parts of the country where cases are more,” Gowda pointed out. “In my opinion, we need to save lives before livelihoods. So, we need to do whatever it takes to save lives on priority.”

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Gowda also said that Covid-19 cases were on the rise in the districts after strict lockdown-like measures were enforced in Bengaluru. “Cases are spreading in rural areas,” he said. “We need the same seriousness in the districts as we did in Bengaluru,” he said, lauding Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa for giving district ministers full authority to take measures.

The clamour for a lockdown is growing in Karnataka. At present, Karnataka’s 2-week ‘close down’ will end at 6 am on May 12.

Yediyurappa has said that he was awaiting instructions from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on imposing a full-fledged lockdown.

BJP MP Shobha Karandlaje is among several elected representatives favouring a lockdown. “The current janata curfew isn’t helping bring cases under control. If people continue moving about like this with marriages and other functions going on, the virus will spread faster,” she said.

Speaking to reporters earlier in the day, Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar lamented that the janata curfew was not effective. “I don’t have to tell you how the janata curfew is being followed in the real sense. It’s not as we expected. I appeal to people, the government alone can’t do it and we need you to cooperate. If cases came down in Mumbai, why not in Bengaluru?” he said.