Prime Minister Narendra Modi held his fifth meeting with chief ministers of all states on the coronavirus situation in India, with focus on...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held his fifth meeting with chief ministers of all states on the coronavirus situation in India, with focus on a strategy for a phased exit from the nationwide lockdown. Modi told chief ministers to provide a blueprint by May 15 as to how their states plan to deal with the lockdowns post May 17.
Modi said the focus of the strategy is to overcome the “twinfold challenge” to reduce transmission rate and increase public activity gradually, while adhering to guidelines, according to the Prime Minister’s Office. “I am of the firm view that the measures needed in the first phase of lockdown were not needed during the second phase and similarly the measures needed in the third phase are not needed in the fourth,” he told the chief ministers.
The meeting was Modi’s fifth consultation with chief ministers since a nationwide lockdown was imposed. The lockdown, imposed first on March 25 in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, was to end on May 3. However, it will now end on May 17 after another extension.
The six-hour meeting began via videoconferencing at 3 pm, and also focussed on the revival of the economy. During the meeting, the chief...