Hyderabad: Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandra Sekhar Rao extended lock down till May 29^th in the State; the earlier schedule lock down will end on May 7^th. But the Union Government extended lock down 3.0 from May 3^rd to May 17^th.

Speaking in a press conference on Tuesday night at Pragathi Bhavan KCR announced that the State Government would follow Central guidelines on allowing activities except those in red zones. He convened a cabinet meeting at a length of seven hours on Tuesday and he disclosed the decision taken by the cabinet. He said the night curfew 7 pm to 7 am will continue across the state for the duration of the lock down. He also said all shops would now stay open in Mandal headquarters and villages in the state.

Only 50% of shops open with lottery system in Municipal towns deciding which would remain open and which would not. The Government will be held a special meeting on May 15^th to review the situation after which some more relaxations would be given. These would include running RTC buses in green zones and opening a few more shops in Hyderabad, he added. By then, we will have clearer pictures from cities like Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai, he said. Hyderabad and surrounding areas are in the red zones and every step would be taken for the strict implementation of the lock down.

In Telangana, Hyderabad, Rangareddy, Medchal- Malkajgiri, Vikarabad and Warangal (Urban) districts are in the red zone as per the Union Government notification. Nine districts are in green zone and 18 districts in the state are comes under orange zone, he added. The state would permit RTC buses only after May 15^th but the Central has allowed the operation of buses in green zones, he said. Autos would be allowed in green zones and cabs in orange zones from Wednesday, he said.

The ban of Religious congregations meetings and processions will however continue. He also said private offices can function with 33% of staff from Wednesday; all State Government offices would function with 100% staff. Some department such as stamps and registrations and RTA would start operating if they are located in red zones also, said KCR. He also said 11 special trains were operated for migrant workers on Tuesday to send them to Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Bihar. He also spoke to CMs of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar after which arrangements are made but the migrants would be sent back in phases.