Ahmedabad, Nov 17 (PTI) Rubbishing a false message about another lockdown, Gujarat minister Kumar Kanani on Tuesday said the state government has no such plans in wake of the recent rise in COVID-19 cases.

The minister of state for health made the statement, as a letter with his name allegedly asking chairmen and secretaries of housing societies to opt for a "voluntary lockdown", started doing rounds on social media.

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"A letter in my name has gone viral on social media, in which chairmen and secretaries of societies have been asked to opt for a voluntary lockdown and implement it strictly at their level," Kanani said in a statement.

The letter is fake and some elements have done this to create panic among citizens, he said.

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"The coronavirus situation in Gujarat is under control. We are not mulling to impose any lockdown. People need not panic because of such fake and baseless messages," the minister said.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel, who is also the state's health minister, urged people not to panic due to the recent hike in cases.

"It is true that cases have risen to some extent, but people need not panic. COVID-19 cases had come down to around 800 (in October) from the earlier 1,200 (emerging daily a few months back), and now the count has again increased to 1,100 to 1,200," Patel said.

"We need to be more careful in this scenario, especially when people travel from one place to another and meet their relatives and friends this festive season," he told reporters in Gandhinagar.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)