The government is likely to extend the ongoing lockdown beyond April 14 to combat the coronavirus spread, Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said after a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday.
Chowdhury said his party put forth some suggestions with regard to the crisis in the farming sector.
According to him, the Congress has suggested that farmers might be exempted from the 21-day lockdown for harvesting of Rabi crops. The party has also demanded that all taxes on fertilisers be withdrawn, he said.
"It is likely that the government may extend the lockdown," Chowdhury told PTI after the meeting.
The Congress leader said the party had suggested that those enrolled under the rural job scheme MGNREGA be given priority while carrying out harvesting of the standing crop.
The leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha, along with party colleague and Opposition Leader in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, attended the meeting with the prime minister via video-conferencing.
Modi interacted with floor leaders of opposition and other parties in Parliament to discuss the situation arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic and the government's efforts to contain the fast-spreading virus in the country.
The death toll due to the novel coronavirus rose to 149 and the number of cases climbed to 5,194 in the country on Wednesday, according to the Union Health Ministry.
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