World ‘under-prepared’ to handle COVID-19 pandemic: PM Modi
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that although humanity has faced many infectious diseases in the past, the world is “underprepared” to handle the COVID-19 pandemic.
Addressing the Raisina Dialogue 2021, Mr Modi in a virtual address said: “A global pandemic has been ravaging the world for over a year. The last such global pandemic was a century ago. Although humanity has faced many infectious diseases since then, the world today is under-prepared to handle the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Mr Modi further said that our scientists, researchers and industry have answered some questions.
“Many solutions have emerged and many more are yet to come,” he said.
“The horrors of the first and second World Wars compelled the emergence of new world order. After the end of the second World War, over the next few decades, many structures and institutions were created,” he added.
Mr Modi urged that as global thinkers and leaders, we must ask ourselves more questions and wonder why did this pandemic come to us.
“Is it because in the race of economic development, the welfare of humanity was left behind? The answers to many such questions can be found in our recent past.” He also called on all participating countries in the dialogue to emerge as a powerful voice for a human-centric approach. “Elsewhere while we may be used to having Plan A and plan B, there is no Planet B, only planet Earth. And so, we must remember that we hold this planet merely as trustees for our future generations,” said the Prime Minister.