Decline in number of Covid-19 cases due to early lockdown: PM

Modi also said that his government has made many interventions which are contributing to a better healthcare system

With the number of active Covid-19 cases in the country falling and predictions that India may be having just 40,000 active coronavirus cases by February next year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday asserted that this happened because India was one of the first countries to adopt a lockdown.

"Today, we are seeing a decline in the number of cases per day and the growth rate of cases. India has one of the highest recovery rates of 88 percent. This happened because India was one of the first countries to adopt a lockdown. India was one of the first to encourage the usage of masks. India actively began to work on effective contact-tracing. India was one of the earliest to deploy the rapid antigen tests," Modi said addressing the inaugural function of Grand Challenges Annual Meeting 2020.

Read | India can control Covid-19 pandemic by February 2021, says government-appointed panel

Modi's lockdown measures that began in March with the hope of combating Covid-19 within 21 days, had to be extended for months and the accompanying economic slowdown gave ammunition to the Opposition parties to question the efficacy of the lockdown strategy of the Modi government, which is also a poll issue in Bihar right now.

The Prime Minister's spirited defence of the lockdown came on a day when the Health Ministry latching on to a government appointed panel's report expressed confidence that India may have just 40,000 active coronavirus cases by February next year if people in the country follow Covid-19 appropriate behaviour. The ministry earlier on Saturday said the active case load in the country is merely 10.7 per cent of the total cases and the active caseload has gone below the 8 lakh figure for the first time after one and a half months.

Scientists have, though, raised questions on the claims of the expert panel.

Read | Half of Indians may have had coronavirus by February, government panel estimates

Speaking of the programme that brings together scientists and innovators in order to deliberate on solving key global challenges, the Prime Minister also said that his government has made many interventions which are contributing to a better healthcare system.

"Take sanitation. Improved cleanliness. More toilet coverage. Who does this help the most? It helps the poor and under-privileged. It leads to a reduction in diseases," he said.

The three-day summit (October 19-21) being co-hosted by by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India, the Indian Council of Medical Research and NITI Aayog, along with the Grand Challenges Canada, the United States Agency for International Development and Wellcome, called for deepened scientific collaborations in solving global health problems, with great emphasis on Covid-19 with an "India for the World" framing.

While flagging the "strong and vibrant scientific community" and good scientific institutions in the country, Modi said they have been India’s greatest assets, specially during the last few months, while fighting Covid-19.

"From containment to capacity building, they have achieved wonders. The journey to these innovations must be shaped by collaboration and public participation," he said as he averred that science will never prosper in silos and that the future will be shaped by societies that invest in science and innovation.

Read | India's lockdown led to GDP contraction as Covid-19 continues to spread

"But, this cannot be done in a short-sighted manner. One has to invest in science and innovation well in advance. That is when we can reap benefits at the right time," he said.

The three-day event will feature leaders' talks, panel discussions and virtual informal conversations on topics ranging from scientific interventions for fighting the pandemic, managing the pandemic and accelerating the development and implementation of global solutions to combat this pandemic and prevent the next one. Approximately 1600 people from 40 countries are participating in this meeting.