New Delhi, Jan 28 (IANS) Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Harsh Vardhan on Tuesday said with precautionary efforts, the country can fight diseases like novel Coronavirus (nCov).
Addressing a press conference here, he said: “Last year, we stopped the Ebola virus from entering India, similarly this year, with all precautionary measures taken by the government we will stop this new Coronavirus disease from entering the country.”
The minister also stressed that no case of nCoV has been detected here in the country so far.
“People who are coming from China have been kept under isolation as a precautionary step because the disease takes some time to manifest.”
Harsh Vardhan also said that his ministry is closely working with the Ministry of External Affairs in order to bring back Indians stuck in China amid the ongoing outbreak there.
He urged media to report on the new virus with responsibility so that common people are not scared. “I will urge the media to report on the issue with sensitivity. If three cases have come to RML that doesn’t mean that they have the disease. You should spread awareness regarding self-test and other advisories instead of fear.”
The Health Ministry also announced on Tuesday that four additional viral research and diagnostic labs of the Indian Council of Medical Research have been sanctioned for testing samples in addition to the National Institute of Virology, Pune.
“Four labs of @ICMRDELHI’s Viral Research & Diagnostics Lab Network at Alleppey, Bengaluru, Hyderabad & Mumbai activated for testing samples.This is in addition to @icmr_niv,Pune,” it said in a tweet.
An outbreak of new strain of Coronavirus has been reported from China’s Wuhan and brought the city to a lockdown.
Chinese health authorities on Tuesday that the death toll due to 2019-nCoV outbreak in the country has increased to 106, with 4,515 confirmed cases in 30 provincial-level regions.
In the backdrop of confirmed cases in neighbouring Nepal, the Indian government has deployed health teams in districts bordering Nepal and Bangladesh.
The symptoms of the new Coronavirus are similar to those of cold but may be accompanied by fever and fatigue, dry cough and dyspnea (shortness of breath).