Prime Minister Modi addressed the nation on 24th March and announced that the country will go under a 21 day lockdown period and termed the move as the ‘only hope.’ In the address, Narendra Modi also announced economic packages to aid the healthcare system.
In his second address to the nation within a span of 5 days, Prime Minister Modi began by congratulating and expressing gratitude towards people who made the ‘Janata curfew’ appeal successful.
To give a perspective about the country’s situation, he cited examples of Italy and the United States that have massively hit by the COVID-19 despite their healthcare being among the top. Healthcare experts of the country after analyzing the situation of other corona hit countries for two months have concluded that social distancing and social distancing alone is the way forward. He stressed, again and again, the seriousness of the situation.
Apart from reiterating the importance of social distancing and appealing to ‘break the chain’, the Prime Minister also noted the negligence shown by a few people that might potentially bring the entire country down.
21 days of total lockdown
In an unprecedented step, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day total lockdown. A complete lockdown across the country will be observed from the midnight of 24th March for a period of 3 weeks. He also said that this is a curfew of sorts, a curfew stricter than the ‘Janata Curfew.’ An important step to fight the virus, the Prime Minister said.
Recognizing the economic implications of the lockdown and the burden on the poor, the Prime Minister reassured the nation that the country would bear the difficulties of the communities. In order to relax the poor from it, the government is trying to bring about a measure soon.
Prime Minister Modi also announced a 15,000 crore economic package towards strengthening the health care system. The money will be used to develop more testing kits, sanitizers, ventilators, isolation and ICU beds.
The Prime Minister requested the co-operation of the people and appealed for people to abide by every government orders. He also reiterated that the priority right now is healthcare. At the end of the speech, the Prime Minister gave out a message, ‘Where there is life, there is hope.’
