Emphasising that the livelihood of the poor needs to be saved, the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government has refused to impose the lockdown ordered by the Allahabad High Court in five cities of the state.

The Allahabad High Court on Monday ordered a lockdown in five cities of UP till April 26, considering the prevailing Covid-19 situation. The lockdown was ordered in Lucknow, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Kanpur and Gorakhpur. As per the Allahabad High Court order, the lockdown was to come into effect from Monday night and till April 26.