“Even World War I and II did not affect as many countries as coronavirus has done,”
Our Correspondent / New Delhi
Terming the Covid-19 as a grave danger, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today made a fervent appeal to all Indians to stay indoors as much as possible to avoid getting infected from the disease. “World has never seen a danger as grave as this”, PM said.
In a televised address to the nation, PM called for ‘Janta curfew’ on March 22 from 7 am-9 pm, saying no citizen, barring those in essential services, should get out of the house.
“Even World War I and II did not affect as many countries as coronavirus has done,” Modi said in a national broadcast.
Asking people to sacrifice “some weeks of yours, some time of yours”, Modi said given that coronavirus has no cure yet, the only way to stay safe is to stay indoors.
“I request all people in the country to get out of the house only when it is extremely necessary, try and do all work from home,” he said.
He requested all people to step out of the house in the coming few weeks only if extremely necessary and work from home as much as possible. He also urged senior citizens above the age of 65 years to stay at home in the coming days.
Mr Modi said social distancing is very necessary for the present phase of coronavirus pandemic. He said roaming around markets and crowded places is not the right approach as this will endanger people. He requested people to avoid going to hospitals for a routine check-up in order to ease pressure on medical staff.
He said the government is taking all necessary steps to ensure the supply of essential commodities. He appealed to the people not to go for panic buying.
He also appealed to the business community to take care of the economic needs of their employees by not deducting their salary if they are not able to come to work. Prime Minister also said the government has decided to constitute a Task Force under the Chairmanship of Finance Minister which will interact with all the stakeholders.
Mr Modi said whenever a natural crisis occurs, generally, it is limited to a few countries or states. However this time, he said the COVID 19 outbreak has put the entire human race in crisis around the world. He said the government is keeping a close vigil and the role of citizens is very important to control the outbreak.
He pointed out that for a developing country like India with a huge population, coronavirus will not be easy to deal with. He said to resolve and restraint are a must in order to contain the outbreak.
He stressed the importance of citizens to show resolve and perform duties and follow the directions laid down by centre and state governments. He said during such pandemics, only one mantra works – the world is healthy when we are healthy.