Madhya Pradesh govt extends lockdown till June 15 amid rising COVID-19 cases

In a major decision, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Chouhan, on Saturday, announced that lockdown in the state has been extended till June 15, while addressing a Facebook live session. He added that the state cannot reopen full-fledged as Coronavirus was still prevalent. Currently, Madhya Pradesh has 3042 active cases, 4269 recoveries, and 334 deaths.

Madhya Pradesh cabinet to expand as state battles Coronavirus without Health minister

Madhya Pradesh govt jobs to returning migrants

On Thursday, the state announced an employment scheme to provide work to the returning lakhs of returning migrants. The government is currently preparing a register of migrants as per their skills and will then provided employment in small, cottage industries or factories, as per requirement. The state is one of the five states - Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh which has seen a heavy inrush of migrants leading to rise in COVID-19 cases. 

Amit Shah dials all State CMs to discuss post-lockdown strategy as May 31 deadline nears

Madhya Pradesh amends labour laws

After Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat amended its state labour laws while Maharashtra and Karnataka have extended working hours to 10 hours for the next 3 months. Shivraj Chouhan's Madhya Pradesh government has abolished certain labour laws, upto three years. The state has also enacted the stringent ESMA to curb any strikes and 'ensure a continuous flow of goods'. Here are the exceptions -

• Industries upto 100 workers can hire as per requirement, no registration for contractors with 50 labourers, No factory inspection for 3 months, no inspection of industries with less than 50 workers and allowed third-party inspection. 
• Increased working hours from 8 to 12 hours, upto 72 hours overtime allowed, allowed shops to function from 6AM to midnight
• Licences to be issued in a day, factory licence renewal once in 10 years, no renewal required for start-ups.

Madhya Pradesh govt offers jobs to returning migrants, land ownership to rural population

Madhya Pradesh's COVID battle

Initially, with the sudden change in government, Madhya Pradesh grappled with Coronavirus without a a Health minister, as Chouhan ran a one-man cabinet till late April. The state also saw rapid increase of cases in its major cities - Bhopal and Indore, with 90 state officials testing positive. Soon the testing rate of the state was increased with the Centre recently listing Indore as a possible role model other urban centres in handling the Covid-19 pandemic.

Coronavirus Live Updates: India's active cases at 86,422 while recoveries soar to 82,369