Officials, experts unhappy over CM’s reluctance to impose restrictions

A senior Minister says economic cost seems to be weighing heavily on mind of Chief Minister

As the city is hit by a second wave of COVID-19 infections, Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, who chaired two review meetings over the past two weeks, has refused to impose any new restriction on public gatherings. This has been contrary to advice from the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) and officials combating the pandemic on the ground. “The economic cost of the lockdown seems to be weighing heavily on the mind of the Chief Minister, who also holds charge of the State’s economy. He also doesn’t want to create panic in society and hence keen on not disturbing normal life to the extent possible,” said a senior Minister who was part of the two review meetings. However, experts and officials are concerned that any further delay in imposing stringent restrictions on gatherings may prove costly for the city in terms of increasing cases creating a health crisis, which may force a lockdown like is being contemplated in Maharashtra.