New Delhi: The Union Home Ministry on Monday took strong exception to the Kerala government’s decision to allow opening of restaurants, public transport and MSME industries in municipal areas, saying it was dilution of the Centre’s lockdown guidelines.
“The state government on April 17 has circulated revised guidelines for lockdown measures which allowed opening of activities which are prohibited in the Centre’s consolidated revised guidelines issued on April 15,” Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote to the Kerala government.
“This amounts to dilution of guidelines issued by the Home Ministry and violation of its April 15 order issued under the Disaster Management Act 2005,” the letter added.
The Kerala government has allowed additional activities to resume amid the lockdown, including opening of local workshops, barber shops, restaurants, book stores and MSMEs in municipal limits, bus travel in cities and towns for shorter distance, two passengers in the back seat of four wheelers and pillion riding on scooters.
