21-day lock-down needed from scientific perspective: Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw

Biotech entrepreneur Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw on Wednesday said the 21-day nation-wide lockdown in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is needed from the scientific point of view to collect required testing data to fully understand the severity of the disease.

"The government has done the right thing. Scientifically, you need those three weeks," the Chairman and Managing Director of Biocon Ltd, told PTI.

One has to step up testing as much more data is needed to know the extent of the affected population, those recovering and recovered and the severity of the disease, Mazumdar-Shaw said.

"You need lot of that (data) to give you comfort so that in 21 days you will know that it's now safe enough to fully limp back. Even when the curfew is lifted, do it gradually.

"After 21 days, you need to gradually remove the curfew to keep making sure that every step of curfew that you are removing is actually still keeping the population safe. That is very important," she said.

Mazumdar-Shaw stressed that the present period needs to be used to step up testing to collect data.

"I personally believe that in 21 days if you can have enough data to suggest that large number of people is infected, the severity of the disease is quite manageable and low, then I think you will get the comfort," she said.

She said people showing mild symptoms and who are positive, should be quarantined.

"I would like to see more hotels brought into the quarantinecum-hospital zone. Before they go to hospitals, there are many people who will have mild symptoms who can recover also, they need not go to hospitals and crowd the hospitals," Mazumdar-Shaw said.

...if you can do all that, then we will be in a good shape when 21-days end to know exactly how we want to go about lifting the curfew," she added.