The state is undergoing the severe coronavirus threat and to avoid mass community spread of the virus the Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced nation-wide complete lockdown but the situation in Goa is completely different. People have come on the roads to do shopping following the announcement of Goa CM to reopen the grocery stores in the state. Most of the places in Goa witnessed a huge crowd of people doing panic buying.
Following the announcement made by prime minister Narendra Modi, the entire country went into the lockdown mode with no movement of vehicles but Goans could not control for two days and the CM had to succumb to the demands made by people of reopening of the grocery stores in Goa.
According to the reports, Goa CM had got annoyed due to the demand from people asking for the opening of shops of essential commodities. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said people should not blame the government for any spread of coronavirus now, after he was forced to relent on his earlier decision of a “100 percent lockdown” in Goa and order the opening up of grocery stores, amid panic and complaints from all quarters.
“We cannot say when and how the coronavirus can be transmitted. Therefore we should take care of ourselves. If tomorrow, coronavirus spreads in a big way in Goa, then you cannot blame the government,” said Mr. Sawant adding that “Government wanted a 100 percent lockdown. The government did not want unnecessary contact because it could lead to the spread of coronavirus,” the Chief Minister said, adding that he was forced to take a decision “due to complaints from many quarters”.
According to the report, CM had no other option left but to succumb to the public demand. The state administration failed to make an arrangement of the essential commodities leaving people in most parts of Goa without the supply of milk, bread, food grains, and other articles.
The opposition also left no stone unturned to play politics at this juncture by blaming the chief minster of failing to make essential goods available to the people of Goa on the fifth day of curfew. It may be recalled that the March 22 Janata curfew announced by PM Modi had been extended by three days by the CM.
“As a doctor, I read about the coronavirus and Covid-19 and how it can spread. After learning about all this, I had felt that there should be a 100 percent lockdown,” Sawant said.
Although CM had appealed the people to maintain social distancing but is it possible to implement in practice? the answer to this question is available in the images that are spreading on social media wherein people are crowding to buy the grocery, fish, chicken, and eggs.
According to the Hindustan Times, Despite some shops opening on Friday, items like vegetables and bread remained out of people’s reach due to disruptions in supply. Distributors have complained that they are yet to receive police clearance to move their vehicles around.
“The public is feeling insecure today, let down by the system which promises but fails to home delivery. Phone numbers were given but calls rarely went through. Frequent reversals have led to a loss in confidence,” Sandeep Heble, a resident of Panaji said, hoping that the situation improves by Saturday.
Goa, one of the last states to get affected by the coronavirus pandemic the first positive case in the state was reported on Wednesday, 23 days after the first case of local transmission was reported in the country has been reeling under a supply shortage of essentials like bread and milk, though the government had significantly more time to prepare for this eventuality.
