Goa CM Pramod Sawant tests coronavirus positive, in home isolation
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant informed via a tweet on Wednesday that he has tested positive for coronavirus and will remain in home isolation as he is asymptomatic. With this, he joins his counterparts Manohar Lal Khattar (Haryana), BS Yediyurappa (Karnataka), and Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Madhya Pradesh) in the list of CMs who contracted the infection. Notably, all of them are BJP members.
Sawant will discharge duties from home
Sawant, who was given the top job of the coastal state after BJP's veteran Manohar Parrikar passed away, said he would discharge his duties from home. "Those who have come in my close contact are advised to take necessary precautions," he said in a tweet. This development comes a day after he held a video-conference with officers handling the COVID-19 situation in the state.
His tweet can be read here
How is Goa faring in the coronavirus crisis?
In April, Goa declared itself "coronavirus-free" after all seven patients who tested positive were discharged. But in the following months, it was revealed that the state was too eager to celebrate, as a worrying number of fresh infections were reported daily. On Tuesday, 588 infections were reported, making it Goa's highest single-day spike. The state has so far recorded 18,006 cases and 194 deaths.
Goa won't impose curbs on travel, allows bars to re-open
Earlier, Sawant declared that no curbs would be levied on travel within and from outside the state from September 1, when Unlock 4.0 started across India. This announcement provided relief to the financially-strained tourism industry, with stakeholders hoping that people would come for vacations later this year. The state also allowed the re-opening of bars, handing over a major relief to restaurant businesses.
However, some locals believe Goa is unlocking too fast
The decision of the BJP government to relax curbs didn't find much support in some locals, who opined it was too early to unlock completely. The Goa wing of AAP claimed that Sawant seems to be relying on herd immunity now. "The breakneck speed at which the BJP government has opened up the state shows that CM Pramod Sawant has given up," AAP said.
