COVID-19: Prasoon Joshi, Anand Mahindra support PM Modi's appeal ahead of festive season

With the onset of the festival season, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday made a cautious appeal to the nation, saying this is not the time to be careless as the novel coronavirus is still around and even a small negligence can dampen the festive spirit. In his seventh address to the nation following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, PM Modi said many videos have surfaced in recent times that show many people have stopped taking precautions. "This is not the right thing to do," said PM Modi.

Supporting PM Modi's appeal, lyricist Prasoon Joshi said, "Masks and social distancing is what will see us through to 2021." Businessman Anand Mahindra also echoed the thoughts and wrote, "“Wahan tufan bhi haar jaatey hain, Jahan kashtiyan zidd pe hoti hain.” Enjoy the festival season. But be ziddi... wear a mask, maintain your social distance...And one day soon, our boats will find safe harbour..." [sic]

PM Modi's address

Highlighting that India will cross the 10 crore testing mark soon, PM Modi maintained that increased testing was India's best weapon to tackle the COVID-19 crisis. Revealing that some vaccines were in an advanced stage, the PM assured that the government was preparing a roadmap to ensure vaccination for all Indians at the earliest.

Wishing people on the eve of festivals such as Navratri, Dasara, Chhath Puja, Diwali and Eid, he urged people to observe social distancing, wash hands frequently and wear a mask.  

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 "If you are careless and moving around without mask, you are putting yourself, children and the elderly at risk," the prime minister said. "We must keep in mind that lockdown may have ended, but the virus is still there," he said.

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The prime minister said the government is making all efforts to ensure that a vaccine, whenever it is launched, reaches every Indian. "We all must remember, there can be no laxity till a medicine is found," Modi said. 

(with PTI inputs)