Terming the ‘janata curfew’ call given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday as a ‘very important measure and intervention to break the chain of the spread of COVID-19’, the Indian government on Saturday, however, quashed rumours of a lockdown in the country in the coming days.
Briefing the media in New Delhi, Joint Secretary at Health Ministry Lav Agarwal said, “Social distancing is a very important measure and intervention to break the chain of the spreading of COVID-19. The janata curfew is something more of coming together of peoples’ efforts in this form against Coronavirus.”
Agarwal said that the word lockdown itself creates unnecessary fear. “What the government is talking is that prevention is better than cure and thereby the social distancing is one of the most effective ways in breaking the chain of spreading the Coronavirus,” he said.
The Health Ministry on March 21 informed that 111 labs across the country will be functional from now for Coronavirus testing.
He added that 1,600 Indians and other people from different nations were kept in quarantine centres in the country.
Agarwal said that on March 21, 262 people from Rome which comprise of mostly students, will arrive and sent for quarantine.
Replying to a question with respect to the community transmission he said, “The government is currently tracing around 7000 cases and factual information on these cases is yet to be obtained.”
