Lockdown is an option, says Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray as COVID-19 cases increase

Mumbai, Mar 19: A day after Maharashtra witnessed the highest one-day spike of 25,833 COVID-19 cases, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Friday said lockdown is an option but he trusts people to follow the norms on their own.

Talking to reporters in Nandurbar, Thackeray also appealed people to get vaccinated against the virus without fear. The COVID-19 situation has become grimmer as the number of new cases on Thursday crossed the earlier highest rise which was recorded in September, he conceded.

"I see lockdown as an option going ahead. But I trust people of the state to cooperate (and follow the COVID-19 norms voluntarily) like the last time," he said.

When the pandemic began last year, there was nothing to fight the virus with, Thackeray said. "But now at least we have vaccines as a shield. The priority now is to ensure that everyone is vaccinated. People should come forward to take the vaccine," he said.

The Union government has assured that there would be no shortage of vaccines, he said. There have been a few instances where a person caught infection after vaccination, but such cases are not "life- threatening", the chief minister said. "Everyone should get vaccinated without fear," he added.