Harsh Vardhan responds to Rahul Gandhi's 'govt not serious on Coronavirus' claim

Amid the deadly Coronavirus outbreak, Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan on Thursday in a media briefing hit out at Rahul Gandhi as he dismissed the Congress leader's accusation that the Central government was not serious about combatting the disease's threat.

The Union Minister said that he had elaborated on the situation of Coronavirus in the Lok Sabha, which he briefly wondered if Rahul Gandhi heard. Dr Harsh Vardhan also stated that India was one of the first countries to react to the situation, even before the WHO, we had started taking precautions from January 17 only by declaring it a world emergency. 

READ | Union Min Harsh Vardhan Lauds Agencies Involved In Evacuation Of Indians From Wuhan

Rahul Gandhi's accusation

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday had accused the BJP-led Central government of not taking the Coronavirus threat "seriously". Taking to Twitter, Gandhi said that the Coronavirus is an "extremely serious threat to our people and our economy." He added that "Timely action is critical." However, he failed to explain why he felt that the Government has not taken the threat seriously. He had also posted a map relating to Coronavirus which had incorrectly depicted India, ceding parts of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh to Pakistan and China, which he later deleted.

READ | 65 More Coronavirus Cases On Japan Cruise Ship: Government

Union Health Minister briefs Parliament over Coronavirus

As the Congress leader accused the government on Wednesday, the Union Health Minister, two days earlier on Monday had briefed the Parliament about the Coronavirus situation. Dr Harsh Vardhan had addressed the seriousness of the situation stating that the WHO had declared the outbreak "a public health emergency of international concern." He also revealed how a number of details regarding the novel disease that are still unknown including the functioning of the virus and the time frame that it works in and elaborated extensively on the measures taken by the Indian Government to control the epidemic.

"After a person is infected with the disease, it takes nearly 14 days for the symptoms to hit in. There are 10-20% cases that are serious enough for the person to be on a ventilator because of pneumonia, 2% of cases show the possibility of death," he said.

READ | Coronavirus: Over 1.97 Lakh Travellers From 1,818 Flights Screened So Far

READ | Taiwan's F-16 Intercepts Chinese Bombers, Tsai Urges To Focus At Coronavirus