Don’t believe in rumours, consult doctor, urges PM
NEWDELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday appealed to people in the country to not believe in rumours surrounding the coronavirus outbreak, even as he directed officials to immediately begin identifying sufficient locations to quarantine suspected cases and to establish adequate critical care facilities to tackle the disease.
The PM asked people to only believe in a doctor’s advice and urged them to avoid handshakes and start greeting each other with ‘namaste’.
“In such times, rumours circulate very rapidly. Some say don’t eat this, don’t do that. Some people will bring in new things such as eat this to keep coronavirus away. It is my request to all my fellow countrymen, kindly keep away from these kinds of rumours,” he said. “Whatever you do, kindly do it on the advice of your doctor. Let’s not become doctors ourselves,” PM Modi added. He said that if due to some reason the world discontinued the habit of greeting each other with ‘namaste’, it was now the right time to go back to the habit.
With the number of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases reaching 34 in the country on Saturday, the PM asked officials to immediately start identifying sufficient locations to quarantine suspected cases, and to establish adequate critical care facilities in case the disease spreads. The remarks came at a review meeting of the concerned ministries on Saturday.
“Officials were instructed to plan for early testing and evacuation of Indians from Iran. He (the PM) highlighted the need for advance and adequate planning and timely response as critical for managing this infectious disease from a public health perspective,” a Union health ministry statement said.
The PM also asked departments to identify best practices for Covid-19 management from across the world and within the states and ensure their adoption. “He mentioned that in view of opinion of experts, people should be advised to avoid mass gatherings as far as possible and be made aware of dos and don’ts. He directed that an immediate exercise be taken up to identify sufficient locations for quarantine and also for critical care provisioning in case the disease spread,” the statement added.
As part of the preparedness and response, the focus of all concerned ministries is on the core areas of surveillance at point of entry (air, sea and land border crossings) and community, laboratory support for scaling up testing, hospital preparedness, logistics and risk communication.
The meeting was attended by health minister Harsh Vardhan, external affairs minister S Jaishankar, minister for state (health) Ashwini Kumar Choubey, cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba, chief of defence staff General Bipin Rawat and others.
“We are keeping a close watch on the global situation and evolving our strategies accordingly. The travel advisory is also modified according to the situation... affected countries, and be vigilant,” the health minister said.
The issue of a possible shortage of drugs and diagnostic kits was also discussed. “Secretary, department of pharma conveyed about the availability of sufficient stocks of medicines, Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients and other consumables for use in India. There is no shortage of medicines or medical devices,” he added.