Addressing the nation for the third time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday announced that the fourth phase of the coronavirus lockdown or ”Lockdown-4′ will be completely different from the earlier three phases.

The prime minister indicated that the Centre will incorporate suggestions given by chief ministers during Monday’s video conference to formulate rules for Lockdown 4.0.  “Information regarding Lockdown-4 will be given by May 18 

Modi had said he is of the “firm view that the measures needed in the first phase of lockdown were not needed during the second phase and similarly, measures needed in the third phase are not needed in the fourth.”

“Scientists say that coronavirus will be a part of our lives for a very long time. But we can’t let our lives remain confined around coronavirus. We will wear masks and maintain social distancing but we will not let it affect us. So lockdown 4 will be in a new form with new rules”, said the Prime Minister.

During his address, PM Modi also announced a special economic package and said the recent decisions by the government, the decisions by the RBI combined with Tuesday’s financial package announcement come to about Rs 20 lakh crore – nearly 10 percent of India’s GDP.

He said, “There is an unprecedented crisis but India will neither get tired nor give up the fight against coronavirus, and asserted that “we have to protect ourselves and move ahead as well”.

The special economic package is for our laborers, farmers, honest taxpayers, MSMEs and cottage industry, the prime minister added.

The prime minister’s statement on the lockdown came a day after several chief ministers demanded modification of lockdown rules and increased autonomy to decide how to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

Economic activities in India are set to “gather steam”, PM Modi told chief ministers on Monday, while asserting that the country will have to devise a “balanced strategy” to revive the economy and deal with Covid-19 with a sharp focus on ensuring that rural areas remain free from the pandemic.

The new lockdown will come in the midst of growing demands by states, industries, workers and several political leaders to withdraw the lockdown from non-COVID areas as it has adversely impacted the economy and livelihoods of a large section of people. However, the number of cases in India continues to rise at a steady rate.