Two days after cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba announced that there would be no extension to the 21-day lockdown, Indian Railways and private airlines have opened their ticket bookings from April 15 onward.
According to a report by Hindu Business Line, Pradeep Sharma, PRO of Ahmedabad division of Western Railways said that there was a clear indictation from the Centre that the lockdwon will not be extended.c
Gauba on Monday admitted that he was ‘surpirsed’ at reports suggesting that the central government had planned on extending the 21-day lockdown period, saying that there were no such plans to do the same.
Last week, Gauba had asked state chief secretaries and administrators of the Union Territories to extensively carry out contact tracing as more than 15 lakh international passengers have landed in India since January 18.
Gauba had admitted that there was a gap between the number of international passengers who need to be monitored by the States /UTs and the actual number of passengers being monitored.
He said, “We initiated screening of international incoming passengers at the airports with effect from 18th January 2020. I have been informed that upto 23rd March 2020, cumulatively, Bureau of immigration has shared details of more than 15 lakh incoming international passengers with the States/UTs for monitoring for COVID-19. However, there appears to be a gap between the number of International passengers who need to be monitored by the States /UTs and ihe actual number of passengers being monitored.”