NEW DELHI: Carmakers in the Indian automobile hub of Chennai will be allowed to keep operating, the state government said on Saturday, amid protests by workers who fear catching Covid-19 in one of the country’s hardest-hit states.
Tamil Nadu’s government extended a near-total lockdown as coronavirus infections and deaths rise in the southern state, where average cases are running at more than 30,000 a day, official figures show.
But a government order issued on Saturday said so-called continuous process industries, which include auto factories, would be allowed to function in accordance with measures such as social distancing to stem the virus’s spread.
It also urged vehicle manufacturers to initiate immediate action to vaccinate all their employees within a month.
Tamil Nadu authorities have ramped up vaccination in recent days, and companies including carmakers have organised vaccination drives.
Hundreds of workers in and around Chennai — often dubbed India’s Detroit — have fallen ill with Covid-19 and dozens have died, labour unions say.
Manufacturing plants run by Ford Motor Co and Hyundai Motor Co near Chennai were shut this week after workers protested over unsafe working conditions. — Reuters
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