On 24 March, the Government of India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi ordered a nationwide lockdown for 21 days, limiting movement of the entire 1.3 billion population of India as a preventive measure against the 2020 coronavirus pandemic in India. It was ordered after a 14-hour voluntary public curfew on 22 March, followed by enforcement of a series of regulations in the country’s COVID-19 affected regions.The lockdown was placed when the number of confirmed positive coronavirus cases in India was approximately 500.

The lockdown restricts people from stepping out of their homes. All transport services – road, air and rail were suspended with exceptions for transportation of essential goods, fire, police and emergency services. Educational institutions, industrial establishments and hospitality services were also suspended. Services such as food shops, banks and ATMs, petrol pumps, other essentials and their manufacturing are exempted. The Home Ministry said the anyone who fails to follow the restrictions can face up to a year in jail.

The mean aim of the corona lockdown is to ensure compulsory social distancing and reduce further spread of the virus to prevent India from entering the community transmission stage, or Stage 3, of the coronavirus outbreak.

What might happen after the completion of Lock down period :

“India would need screenings on an extensive scale after the 21-day lockdown period is over. The incubation period is about 15 days and the virus manifests by then. So assuming everyone stays put at home, the chances are they would only infect their immediate family members. Assuming they step out to buy groceries, there is a chance of infecting others,” explained K Srinath Reddy, president of the Public Health Foundation of India. Rapid screening tests would then help to identify the people at risk (with high viral load) and they can be isolated.

As I said above, the mean objective of the Lock down is to prevent India from entering the community transmission stage and stabilize the medical/health crisis situation in the nation ,but keeping the increasing number of coronavirus cases in mind and the fresh scenario emerged after the Tablighi Jamaat congregation fiasco had made the situation much more complicated.

Thus according to medical experts and media, the government is unlikely to go for an abrupt withdrawal of the lockdown as such a move could undo all efforts made to contain the virus spread during the 21-day lockdown.

On the other hand the complete removal of lockdown in this scenario may lead to the following , they are :

1]Crowding : People, who are contained in houses and restricted from travelling , will now start coming out of their houses and may conduct social gatherings for different purposes causing Crowding , heavy traffic , sudden increasing in air pollution from vehicles etc…

2]Further Spread : Increased social gathering and crowding will cause for further increased spread of this pandemic relegating the purpose of lock down as a whole.

3] Market fluctuations : Keeping the economic slow down and increased prices of essential goods in mind , we can say that there will be further market fluctuations either positively or negatively.

Is there a need for second Lock down ?

The controversial event in Delhi has resulted in a steep rise in coronavirus infections as well as fatality tally as many of the attendees have travelled across the country.Thus in this situation removal of Lock down or not introducing second lock down can lead to massive spread of this disease leading India into the third stage .So , implementation of at least partial lock down and strictly following social distancing and personal hygiene are needed to prevent this virus from turning a bane for socio-economic stability of India.