80 cities across India go into lockdown

Eighty cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Bengaluru are going into complete lockdown this month as India fights to contain the spread of coronavirus.

The states going into lockdown till March 31 include those where coronavirus cases have been reported - Maharashtra, Kerala, Delhi, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Telangana, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, West Bengal, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Puducherry and Uttarakhand.

Trains, metros and inter-state buses have been suspended across the country.
Markets, malls, cinemas, schools, colleges and gyms are already shut in most of the states. Many have also imposed Section 144, a law that bans more than five people from gathering.

A list of cities on lockdown was released after the Cabinet Secretary had a meeting with Chief Secretaries of all states Sunday morning.

Delhi has shut all markets and sealed its borders, said Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, announcing a lockdown from 6 am on Monday to March 31.

He also said all flights in and out of Delhi would be suspended, but the central government has overruled this.

During the lockdown, no cabs, taxis, auto-rickshaws will be allowed to operate in the national capital. Private vehicles will also be banned. Vehicles linked to the personnel of 24 essential services - including police, health, fire, prisons, electricity, water, chemists, petrol pumps - will be exempted.

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