Coronavirus: PM Modi Declares 21-Day Lockdown Across India

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday evening declared a complete lockdown across the country for 21 days. The lockdown will come into force from Tuesday midnight and stronger than the Janata Curfew, he said.

“Today, I am going to announce a very important measure in our fight against Covid-19. The entire country will be under lockdown from today (Tuesday). The complete lockdown will come into effect from midnight tonight,” the PM said in a televised address to the nation.

“If we are not able to manage the upcoming 21 days (of nationwide complete lockdown), we will be pushed back 21 years,” he added.

The PM described the situation in different countries due to the pandemic that has infected more than 3.5 lakh people and killed over 16,000.

“This virus has been spreading very fast across the world. It spreads like wildfire. Looking at the experience of these countries, and what the experts say, the only successful way to tackle the spread of the virus is social distancing,” he said.

“Some people believe that social distancing is only for those who are infected with the disease. It’s not true, and this thought will be detrimental for you, for me and for everyone. Social distancing is for everyone, even for the Prime Minister,” he added.

The lockdown declaration came on a day when the number of positive coronavirus cases in the country rose to 519 and one more death was reported, taking the toll to 10 on Tuesday.

This is the second time in a week when the PM addressed the country on the fast-spreading COVID-19 disease.