Observe voluntary lockdown or face curfew: UMC chief to people

The commissioner of Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation on Friday asked people to observe Sunday's 'Janta curfew' announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The move, announced by the PM during a national address on Thursday, seeks to keep people indoors between 7am and 9pm on Sunday in a bid to stall the spread of the novel coronavirus.

In a WhatsApp message, UMC commissioner Sudhakar Deshmukh asked people to observe a voluntary lockdown, saying those violating such social distancing appeals were putting crowded Ulhasnagar at risk. "If people do not obey, it may force me to impose curfew," he added in the message.