The mask and "Do Gaz Doori" or physical distancing are the only medicines for coronavirus until there is a vaccine, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today, interacting with villagers in Uttar Pradesh.
"Till such time that we don't get a vaccine for coronavirus, the only way to stop it from infecting us is to maintain good personal hygiene, wash our hands with soap regularly, cover our mouths with a mask when we go out of our homes and most importantly, maintain do gaz doori (six-foot distance)," PM Modi said, holding up his stole as an example of a makeshift mask.
PM Modi launched via video the "Atma Nirbhar Uttar Pradesh Rozgar Abhiyan", a scheme to promote local entrepreneurship and provide job opportunities in partnership with industrial associations.
At the virtual launch, the PM interacted with villagers from six districts of Uttar Pradesh.
He praised UP's efforts to fight the coronavirus, pointing out that the size of its population was comparable to four countries that had seen 1,30,000 deaths - England, France, Italy and Spain.
"These countries at one time had conquered the world and were the biggest powers of the world, but if you add up the populations of all these countries, it comes to 24 crore, but in India, UP alone has 24 crore. How effective UP has been can be seen from the fact that the four European nations together had 1,30,000 deaths due to COVID-19. But in UP, the number of deaths is 600. It shows that UP has been tacking the issue proactively and effectively," said the Prime Minister.
"I agree, however, that death is death, and every life matters and it is sad that any lives were lost, be it in India or elsewhere in the world."
