Fight against coronavirus a shared responsibility: Jitendra Singh

Union Minister of State for the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) Dr Jitendra Singh on Saturday said that the fight against novel coronavirus is a shared responsibility and everyone has to play their part in containing the spread.

Singh made these remarks while chairing a meeting here to review the preparedness of Jammu and Kashmir in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.

Advisor to Lieutenant Governor Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar and Health and Medical Education Department Financial Commissioner Atal Dulloo were also present in the meeting.

Addressing the meeting, the Union Minister lauded the efforts of the medical fraternity of the Union Territory, "which is doing a commendable job" and sought cooperation from all sections of the society in combating the spread of the virus.

"All of us have to cooperate in an optimum manner and every person needs to take all necessary precautions and exercise individual and collective responsibility in this fight against the coronavirus," Singh said.

He also asked people to follow Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for the 'Janata curfew' on Sunday to minimize social interaction in efforts to help contain the virus. Singh also directed the officials to restrict the number of attendants in the hospitals and exploring the possibility of designated OPD hours for regular patients to avoid gatherings.

Bhatnagar also emphasised on the need for strictly adhering to guidelines in dealing with the pandemic and said people should not panic, follow the government advisories.

Financial Commissioner Dulloo, during the meeting, presented a detailed report about various measures taken by the government to contain the spread of coronavirus in J & K.

He said that advisories have been issued to all hospitals to suspend all non-essential OPDs and surgeries and a decision has been taken to quarantine all foreigners arriving in J & K and passengers coming from Ladakh.

The meeting was also attended by several other senior government officials.