Uttar Pradesh government on April 19 refused to follow Allahabad High Court directions to lockdown five cities. Allahabad HC directed lockdown in Lucknow, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Kanpur, Gorakhpur from April 19 evening till April 26 - in view of the rapid daily increase in coronavirus cases. The court said it is needed because the pandemic had "virtually incapacitated our medical infrastructure... specially in cities like Prayagraj, Lucknow, Varanasi, Kanpur & Gorakhpur" - because it had to protect both lives & livelihoods. A Bench of Justices Ajit Kumar & Siddhartha Varma pulled up the government for its lack of response stating that the medical system could collapse if urgent measures are not taken. Court noted that even the Chief Minister of the State is in isolation & only VIPs are getting medical treatment. Uttar Pradesh is one of the worst affected states in this second Covid-19 wave; the state reported over 30,000 new cases on April 19 morning, taking its active caseload to over 1.91 lakh. Only Maharashtra - with more than 6.7 lakh active cases - has been more badly hit than UP.
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