The World Health Organization (WHO) has heaped praises on India for its tackling of the Coronavirus pandemic, saying that the future of Coronavirus will pretty much be decided by how India takes up the challenge of eradicating it.
The executive director of the WHO, Michael Ryan, said India, the world’s second most populous country, has a tremendous capacity to deal with the coronavirus outbreak. He added, “India led the world in eradicating two silent killers and eliminating them from the country… India has tremendous capacities. It is exceptionally important that countries like India lead the way to show the world what can be done.” It was also mentioned that the eradication of dreaded diseases like smallpox and polio by India was a gift for the world.
The executive director’s remarks came at a time when the global cases of Coronavirus have neared the 335,000 mark, and the deaths due to the infection have soared to close to 15,000. India, meanwhile, would be crossing the 500 mark today for positive cases in the country, with 10 deaths reported at the time of filing this report.
Earlier, the WHO had also praised PM Modi for his remarkable leadership and commitment to fight the dreaded virus. “The commitment from the Indian government and the Prime Minister’s Office has been enormous, very impressive. It is one of the reasons why India is still doing quite well. I am very impressed that everyone has been mobilised,” Henk Bekedam, WHO’s representative to India said. He also praised the ICMR, leading the fight against COVID–19, saying, “We have very good research capacity in India and especially at ICMR and department of health research. They have been able to identify the virus. Now India will continue to be part of the research community.”
The Indian government has been proactive in taking radical measures, anticipating an imminent outbreak of Coronavirus in the country. The government has ordered an additional 10 lakh coronavirus test kits to start checking for community transmission. The Modi government had also roped in the private medical sector to carry out the tests. India evacuated its citizens from China and Iran, and latest from Italy, showing how committed the government was in ensuring the safety of its people, even if they were abroad. All unofficial visas were then cancelled, which effectively meant that India had quarantined itself. Further, curbs were put in place with time for all incoming travellers, finally leading to a 14 day quarantine for all. Outgoing travel was also discouraged.
Finally, almost the entire nation is now under lockdown. Seeing India go into lockdown, UK has done the same, with PM Boris Johnson announcing a nationwide lockdown. The US though, having Donald Trump as President, is having a tough time choosing between the economy and human lives. It seems India is emerging as a guiding light for other nations to contain the spread of Coronavirus, and arrest its proliferation to avoid an Italy or Spain-like situation. India truly being the Vishwaguru.