Shortly after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced lockdown extension till May 3 to fight Covid-19, Congress leader P Chidambaram attacked the central government saying the poor have been left to fend for themselves.

“We reciprocate the PM’s New Year greetings. We understand the compulsion for extending the lockdown. We support the decision. CMs’ demand for money elicited no response. Not a rupee has been added to the miserly package of March 25, 2020. From Raghuram Rajan to Jean Dreze, from Prabhat Patnaik to Abhijit Banerji, their advice has fallen on deaf years,” Chidambaram said on Twitter on Tuesday.

“The poor have been left to fend for themselves for 21+19 days, including practically soliciting food. There is money, there is food, but the government will not release either money or food. Cry, my beloved country,” he said in another tweet.

CMs’ demand for money elicited no response. Not a rupee has been added to the miserly package of March 25, 2020

From Raghuram Rajan to Jean Dreze, from Prabhat Patnaik to Abhijit Banerji, their advice has fallen on deaf years.

The poor have been left to fend for themselves for 21+19 days, including practically soliciting food. There is money, there is food, but the government will not release either money or food.

PM Modi on Tuesday extended a nationwide lockdown until May 3 as the number of coronavirus cases crossed 10,000 despite a three-week shutdown.

PM Modi, in his third address to the nation, said the challenge was to stop the virus from spreading to new parts of the country.

“Till May 3, every Indian will have to stay in lockdown. I request all Indians that we stop the coronavirus from spreading to other areas,” he said.

The current three-week-old lockdown was scheduled to end at midnight on Tuesday.

The Prime Minister had on Saturday held consultations with chief ministers through video-conferencing, during which talks were held over the need for extending the lockdown further after taking into consideration the rising number of Covid-19 cases in the country.