Editor’s Pick: Lockdown only as last resort

The Hindu Newsletter - The Hindu Newsletter - Editor's Pick [logo] Editor's Pick Wednesday | 21 April, 2021 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [[Arrow]Open in browser](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link11) [[Mail icon]More newsletters](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link10) [alt_text](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link2) Lockdown only as last resort [ ](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link12) In sharp contrast to his speech in March last year when a weeks-long national lockdown was announced with 45 minutes notice, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday urged States to only resort to [lockdown as an absolute last resort](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link9) as the country now battles a deadly second wave of [COVID-19](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link19). “We have to save ourselves from a lockdown and do our best to avoid it and I request States to pay more attention to effectively managing micro containment zones,” Mr. Modi said in his [20-minute address to the nation](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link8). The Prime Minister said the situation today was different from the first time around — there are vaccines, more medical insight into the virus and better infrastructure — and the government’s aim now is to save economic activity as well as saving lives. He alluded to the prevailing oxygen supply crisis and said Indian industry as well as its transport sector was working hard to ensure that it was available as quickly as possible in places needed. Several States had imposed weekend lockdowns and curfew like conditions while [Delhi has imposed a week-long lockdown](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link4). Reaching out to migrant workers in his address, some of whom have [started moving away from cities](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link5) in a worrying repeat of last year, the Prime Minister urged state administration to boost the confidence of workers and convince them to stay wherever they are so that they may be given their vaccine shots soon. The PM’s address came a day after the government said it was opening up the vaccination drive to include [all above the age of 18 from May 1](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link7). On Tuesday, Bharat Biotech, the maker of Covaxin, said it was expanding its manufacturing capacity to around [700 million doses annually](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link3)while the US pharma company major Johnson & Johnson said it has submitted an application to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) to conduct a bridging clinical study of its single-dose vaccine. Ramping up vaccinations remains the best strategy to fight the virus and the best way of averting economically damaging lockdowns. That marks this story out as our top pick of the day. [underlineimg] Today's Editorials [Arrow][Managing an upheaval: On universal vaccination](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link14) [Arrow][A league of their own: On Europe's biggest football clubs](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link13) [underlineimg] Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor's Pick and more. [Click here](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link10) [underlineimg] Try out The Hindu's daily news quiz Name the tiny helicopter that NASA successfully flew on Mars early on Monday, the first powered flight on another planet. 1. Opportunity 2. Curiosity 3. Ingenuity 4. Perseverance To find out the answer and play the full quiz, [click here](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link1) Today's Best Reads [[ A health worker takes a mouth swab sample of a man to test for COVID-19 as others wait their turn to get tested at the Urban Primary Health Centre Musheerabad in Hyderabad on Tuesday, April 20, 2021 ] Coronavirus | Over 2,000 COVID-19 deaths on single day](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link6) [[ ] A low-carbon future through sector-led change](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link15) Copyright @ 2021, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. If you are facing any trouble in viewing this newsletter, please [try here](vvB9HlHIB9HlJNAABeY2CK/link11) If you do not wish to receive such emails [go here](mailto:rm-0bfc39p5bf2f90kaup33rtbysa8hkby@newsalert.thehindu.com?subject=Unsubscribe&body=You will be unsubscribed from our mailing list.)