Chief minister Hemant Soren’s 12 years old son is learnt to have contracted Covid-19 and is currently under home isolation, indicating how the deadly virus is fast spreading its tentacles in the state as the second wave of the raging global pandemic throws everyone’s lives out of gear nationally. Unlike the first wave, the ongoing pandemic is also impacting those up to 45 years of age and children.

Soren has two sons--one is 12 and other about six. While Soren or the state government hasn’t officially announced about the status of CM’s son, sources in his office said that the kid’s sample, along with family members of the chief minister were collected two days back. Speaking to a private channel earlier in the day during a programme on Covid-19, Soren said, “My son too is positive now and I am seeing it at home too as the virus is starting to impact everyone across all age groups,” He said, adding that his government is keeping a strict vigil over the situation to take corrective steps.

On oxygen cylinders, which are emerging as a major crisis in several states, Soren said that the state has sufficient quantity of production but there exists challenges in the logistics of its transportation, which they are looking into. “We have also formed teams to do raids to curb the black marketing of oxygen,” said Soren.

Since last few days after his return from election campaigning in Madhupur on April 14, Soren has been holding marathon meetings daily to tackle the Covid situation. On Sunday, the state government announced fresh curbs to break the transmission chain by cancelling all kinds of exams, reducing gatherings at marriages to 50 from 200, and closing down all education and anganwadi centres in the wake of mounting cases of new infections and fatalities daily.

While the state government is still to decide on total lockdown, as demanded by several quarters including Soren’s own party—Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), many entities have decided for self-imposed lockdown. After sections of trade bodies in Ranchi that went for a weeklong lockdown from today, judiciary will be in lockdown mode from Monday.

After an emergent meeting on Sunday evening, Jharkhand State Bar Council in a statement said they will restrain from all kinds of judicial work—both online and offline for next seven days. Rajesh Pandey, state bar council secretary said, “Considering the growing cases of infection among advocates, their staffs and others and inadequate medical facilities in the state, it has been decided that all advocates will remain off-duty for one week from Monday across all the courts and all platforms.”