Follow social distancing, avoid the worst, says Wuhan returnee

A Maharashtra woman who saw the worst of the novel coronavirus outbreak right at its epicentre in Wuhan in China on returning to her native Satara has asked people to strictly adhere to scial distancing norms if they do want to experience a heart-wrenching repeat.

Ashwini Patil, who had hit the headlines when she put out a video asking the Indian government to airlift her and fellow Indians stuck in the virus-induced lockdown in Wuhan, returned to India on February 27 and was quarantined in Manesar.

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"I had tested negative in Wuhan and my first test in India also returned negative. I have seen the situation in Wuhan. The lockdown was absolute. We could go to the supermarket at first, but with the number of Covid-19 patients not going down, they enforced a strict community lockdown," she told PTI on Saturday.

"During the lockdown, police, guards and nurses were deployed outside housing societies. Someone wanting to go out, even for a genuine reason, needed police permission. Grocery and vegetables were brought by community workers and police. Those found on the roads faced action," she said recounting the dark days.

"I want to appeal to all fellow Indians to observe social distancingg if they do not want to face a situation like in Wuhan," she said. Patil lived in Wuhan with her Polish husband, who works as a financial controller for a firm. While her husband, who suffers from vertigo, was evacuated by his country, Patil's visa got stuck as Wuhan ground to a lockdown as Covid-19 cases began piling up.

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