New Delhi, March 11 Amid coronavirus scare in the country, Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Ashwini Kumar Choubey said that there was no need for panic and the government mechanism was in place to combat COVID-19.
Speaking to the media here, Choubey said: "We are prepared. When there was one patient then also we were prepared and now also we are prepared. We issue advisories from time to time."
Choubey said that patients of COVID-19 were responding to the treatment and recovering.
"Fortunately there is no casualty in the country and patients are recovering. They have been kept in isolation wards. Few of them are expected to be discharged from the hospital," said Choubey.
However the Minister advised people to observe personal hygiene and said: "People must take precautions and follow protocol. They are doing it also. There were hardly any public gatherings on a festival like Holi. People are cooperating with the government on this issue. I think the situation will be under control as soon as the mercury rises."
He also added that the matter continues to be discussed globally. "We have also helped many countries at the time of crises. We set laboratory in Iran. There are more than 50 labs to conduct tests. Lakhs of people are screened daily.
"The ministry is in touch with the Health Department in every state and UT. Group of Ministers meets everyday. PM himself held a high level meeting. We are following his directions also. There is no need to panic over coronavirus," he said.
The first outbreak of novel coronavirus was reported from Wuhan city of China in December last year. Since then, the virus has spread to more than 100 countries.
The Indian Government continues its efforts in containing the disease by universal screening at the airports, and sea ports. The government on Tuesday brought in tougher border control measures to combat the COVID-19 outbreak as the number of patients mostly from travel history to affected countries, rose.
The fresh restrictions both for outbound and inbound travel now include major European countries including France, Spain and Germany.
( With inputs from IANS )