Coronavirus: India may colour-code zones during lockdown extension, says report
Sign up now: Get insights on Asia's fast-moving developments
A street in Mumbai is seen empty during a nationwide lockdown on April 11, 2020.
PHOTO: AFP
NEW DELHI (BLOOMBERG) - India's government is likely to divide the country into three zones - red, orange and green - during a proposed extension of a lockdown and might permit a few services to function in safe zones, the Economic Times reported, citing people it didn't identify.
No activity will be allowed in the red zones, where a sizable number of cases were detected, or areas declared as hot spots.
In the orange zone, where few cases were found in the past, with no increase in the number of infections, activities such as limited opening of public transport will be allowed.
Green zones will be in the districts where there are no cases, the report said.
The nationwide lockdown, which was due to end on Tuesday (April 14), looks set to be extended by two more weeks till end-April after a consensus emerged among states last Saturday for continuing the curbs.
There has been no formal announcement on the extension from the government.
India has so far reported 8,446 infections and 288 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
The government may allow small-scale industries and liquor shops to open, and resume limited domestic air and road transport.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi may announce the exemptions and restrictions on Sunday or Monday, the newspaper reported.
