Bihar extends COVID-19 lockdown till 1 June; shops selling essential items will be open between 6 and 10 am

Patna: The Nitish Kumar government in Bihar on Monday extended till 1 June the COVID-induced lockdown that has been in force for nearly a month and was to be effective till Tuesday.An announcement to this effect was made by the chief minister on his official twitter handle."The lockdown has had a good impact and there has been a decline in the corona contagion. Hence, a decision has been taken to continue with the lockdown till June 01", Kumar tweeted after chairing a high level meeting convened to review the pandemic situation in the state, which was attended by members of his cabinet and top officials.Lockdown was first clamped with effect from 5 to 10 May, after the state was rattled by an unprecedented spurt in COVID 19 cases and fatalities.It was subsequently extended till 25 May. The restrictions include suspension of almost all business activities. Shops dealing in essential items have been allowed to do business for four hours from 6 am to 10 am in the morning.Strict measures are being taken, including police crackdown, to prevent people from flouting the rules and those found to be flagrantly violating these are being booked under the Disaster Management Act and the Epidemics Act.Besides, ministers have been rebuked while an official notification for touring their constituencies to supervise development works and told that such acts could have a detrimental effect on adherence to the restrictions by common people.More than four lakh people have been infected and over 2,000 have lost their lives since April, when the devastating second wave hit the state. Bihar has lost many of its luminaries from all walks of life during the period.