Can states dilute Lockdown 4.0 guidelines? No, says Home Ministry

Inside the red and orange zones, containment and buffer zones will be identified by the district administration and local urban bodies.

The Home Ministry said on Monday that state or Union Territory can not dilute the guidelines issued for the fourth phase of nationwide lockdown that will continue till May 31.

In a communication to the chief secretaries of the states and Union territories, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said the guidelines for the fourth phase of the lockdown were issued after taking the views of the states, following a video-conference held by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with chief ministers on May 11.

"As emphasised in my earlier letters, I would like to reiterate again that States and Union Territories cannot dilute restrictions imposed vide the aforesaid guidelines issued by MHA. States and UTs, based on their assessment of the situation, may prohibit certain other activities in various zones, or impose such restrictions as deemed necessary."

"I would urge you to ensure compliance of the new guidelines and direct all concerned authorities for their strict implementation," Bhalla said in his letter to the chief secretaries on Sunday night," the letter read.

Bhalla said under the new guidelines effective from Monday, the states and Union territories will categorise "red", "orange" and "green" zones taking into consideration the revised guidelines issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Sunday.

Inside the red and orange zones, containment and buffer zones will be identified by the district administration and local urban bodies with technical inputs at the local level and by taking into consideration the health ministry guidelines.

Ramzan ceasefire: Armed encounters from 2015 to 2017 rose 50% over 2012-14

Data shows an increase in violence and related deaths, particularly after the July 2016 killing of militant commander Burhan Wani-209 militants were killed in 2017, up 65 per cent from 136 in 2016.

The Ramzan ceasefire announced by the Indian government on May 16, 2018, comes after a period of heightened armed violence and killings in Kashmir. An IndiaSpend analysis of Jammu & Kashmir Police data shows that in the three years since March 2015, when the current government assumed power in the state, armed encounters between militants and security forces have increased by 53% over the preceding three years. Deaths in conflict have similarly increased by 51%.



The Peoples Democratic Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party formed a coalition government in Jammu & Kashmir in March 2015. Data suggest an increase in violence and related deaths since then, particularly after the July 2016 killing of militant commander Burhan Wani–209 militants were killed in 2017, up 65% from 136 in 2016.
The data also attest to a spurt in incidents of stone pelting, pellet and bullet injuries, as well as damage to homes and private property.



“The alliance between PDP and BJP was sold to the people with the promise that it would lead to a peace process. But the peace process never took off,” Noor Ahmad Baba, political commentator and former head of Kashmir University’s political science department, told IndiaSpend, “On the contrary, the protests and political dissent in the aftermath of Burhan Wani’s killing is being met with repression. It has further alienated the people especially the youth.”



The coalition partners have been at loggerheads over many issues, the latest disagreement having been about the current ceasefire–the PDP’s proposal to New Delhi had been opposed by the state BJP unit, as The Telegraph reported on May 11, 2018, and also by the union defense ministry, as the Hindustan Times reported on May 13.



The central home ministry relented eventually and announced a ceasefire. “It is important to isolate the forces that bring a bad name to Islam by resorting to mindless violence and terror,” home minister Rajnath Singh said on Twitter on May 16, 2018.

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