Need to give importance to economy, battle COVID-19: PM to CMs

As India enters final week of the lockdown, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday conveyed to chief ministers that the country will have to give importance to the economy as well as to continue the fight against coronavirus.

In a video conference with the chief ministers, fourth such interaction since March 22 when he first spoke to them on the pandemic, Modi also highlighted the importance for states to enforce prescribed guidelines strictly in the coronavirus hotspots zones, the government said in a statement.

The prime minister underlined that the lockdown has "yielded positive results as the country has managed to save thousands of lives in the past one and a half months", it said.

"Prime Minister said that the country has seen two Lockdowns till now, both different in certain aspects, and now we have to think of the way ahead. He said that as per experts, the impact of coronavirus will remain visible in the coming months," the statement added.

Modi also said that masks and face covers will become part of lives of people in the days ahead, adding everyone's aim must be to ensure rapid response under the current circumstances.

Among those present at the virtual meet, included Home Minister Amit Shah, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan and top officials from the PMO and the Union Health Ministry.

The chief ministers who attended the meeting included Arvind Kejriwal (Delhi), Uddhav Thackeray (Maharashtra), E K Palaniswami (Tamil Nadu), Conrad Sangma (Meghalaya) Trivendra Singh Rawat (Uttarakhand) and Yogi Adityanath (Uttar Pradesh).