Coronavirus: “‘Do gaz ki doori’ will be the new normal amid the third phase of lockdown.” , says Prakash Javadekar

DELHI: On Saturday, Prakash Javadekar, the Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting said that the worst phase of the coronavirus epidemic in India appears to be over, but it was important to continue to follow all precautions and guidelines to contain the virus.

“I think the worst is over. But till the time the disease is not completely contained, we should continue to follow all precautions and guidelines,” he told ANI.

The Union Minister appreciated the management of COVID-19 of the country and said that various timely initiatives, including a nationwide lockdown, helped India perform better than many other countries.

He further said that the lockdown has been extended as the earlier lockdown proved successful to mitigate the pandemic outbreak in the country. 

However, practically half of the country will be fully operational from 4th May with certain restrictions in the third phase of lockdown. 

“That is why it (lockdown) has been extended for two weeks. The various zones are well-defined. Following the social distancing norm of ‘do gaz ki doori’ will be a new normal till the time a vaccine is developed for COVID-19,” he said.

On Friday, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued an order under the Disaster Management Act 2005 to further extend the lockdown by two weeks till May 17.