A screen grab of the tweet by CII Jharkhand chairman Sanjay Sabherwal on Sunday. Telegraph picture

The CII has also e-mailed its concern to Hemant and chief secretary Sukhdev Singh and urged them to allow the industries to reopen.

Twitter user @sdan_sg wondered whether people would stop coming after two weeks or Covid-19 would stop spreading.In reply, another user @PujaPatwari2 said: “They (students and labourers) should be kept in quarantine. But my point is what’s the need of not complying with the Centre’s rules in Jharkhand. We are in green and orange zone and hence we should be allowed some leverages as well. We belong to a middle class family, suffering the most.”

Tabish Khan @TabishNK tweeted: “Our work depends on daily sales and thus I want to open my garage. I don’t have any problem following the lockdown if the government can deposit Rs 15,000 per month for me and my staff to make both ends meet.”

Many feared that the state government would keep extending the lockdow.

In a letter to Hemant on Monday, the Singhbhum Chamber of Commerce and Industry appreciated the government’s efforts but also apprised the chief minister of the problems faced by distributors, jewellers, chartered accountants, bar association and other industries.

“To prevent a health crisis from becoming a humanitarian crisis, we would very humbly request that permission to open the markets as per MHA guidelines may be granted. You may decide suitable restrictions for this too,” the letter stated.

Social media platforms are agog with posts criticising chief minister Hemant Soren’s decision to continue with the total lockdown and not implement the Centre’s relaxations.

Will Covid-19 cases stop occurring after May 17? What if the migrant labourers and students who arrived in the last couple of days are infected? Why can’t the government support small businesses financially? What will happen to the lakhs of families who are dependent on earning from their shops?

These are some of the questions that kept popping up ever since Hemant tweeted his decision.

In response to the CM’s tweet, Sanjay Sabherwal, chairman of the Jharkhand chapter of the CII and managing director of Metaldyne Industries Limited, on Sunday posted: “Your leadership in the Covid-19 fight has been exemplary and shows in the Jharkhand numbers. Now is the time to open industrial activities as per the MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs) guidelines keeping the incoming students and workers in quarantine for safety of the society.”

Sabherwal told The Telegraph it was not fair to hold the economy to ransom.

“People will keep coming from other states. That isn’t going to stop. The ones who come must be kept in quarantine, but why hold others to ransom?. The government in Delhi, which has a number of red zones, has allowed relaxations for some businesses. I am very disappointed. We need to have proper systems in place instead of blindly imposing the lockdown,” he said.