Andhra Pradesh Governor asks citizens to be more vigilant to combat Coronavirus

Andhra Pradesh Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan on Saturday urged people to be more vigilant and stated the people and the government together can help the country fight the coronavirus pandemic.

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'Need to be vigilant'

A release said, "Governor Biswabhushan Harichandan appealed to the people to be more vigilant in the fight against coronavirus. He said it is possible to prevent the spread of coronavirus with the joint partnership of the government and civil society."

The Governor held high-level meeting at the Andhra Pradesh Raj Bhawan in Vijayawada which was attended by the state Chief Secretary Nilam Sawhney, Special Chief Secretary of Health and Medical department Jawahar Reddy.

At least 300 confirmed cases of the virus have been reported in India with at least four reported deaths. The Union government on Thursday announced that no international flights will be allowed to land in the country for a week from March 22.

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In an address to the nation on Thursday evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged the citizens to be vigilant and not go out unnecessarily. He called for a 'Janta curfew' on Sunday, March 22 from 7 am to 9 pm in an attempt to break the contact chain amongst people. The move is also being widely touted as a testing measure for a possible curfew in the future. PM Modi also urged senior citizens to not step out of their house for the next few weeks.

The Prime Minister also announced the formation of a COVID-19 Economic Task Force under the Ministry of Finance. "The global pandemic is affecting the economy as well. Keeping in mind the economic challenges, the Government of India under the Finance Ministry has decided to form a COVID-19 Economic Task Force. This task force will stay in touch with all stakeholders and will take appropriate decisions based on the feedback. It will ensure that it will take steps to reduce the burden on the economy," the Prime Minister said.

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Globally, around 11,800 people have died due to Coronavirus, with the epicenter being China. The virus has infected around 2,84,000 people globally and has now spread to North America, South America, Europe, New Zealand, and more than 100 other countries.