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Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on 16 March thanked Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for conducting the “fruitful and constructive” video conference with leaders of the SAARC nations and promised his country`s “fullest support” to combat the corona virus pandemic.
“I thank PM @narendramodi for his initiative to combat #COVID19 with cooperation among #SAARCNations.The discussion was fruitful and constructive with many great ideas being shared and initiated. #LKA will extend the fullest support and thank the member nations for their solidarity,” Rajapaksa tweeted.
PM Narendra Modi’s action plan to combat COVID-19 with SAARC leaders lauded: USAIC
USAIC has lauded Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s action plan to combat the novel corona-virus with SAARC leaders, saying that his strategy to take proactive steps with graded response is a smart approach to tackle this unprecedented situation.
In a video-conference of SAARC members on March 15, Prime Minister Modi proposed setting up a COVID-19 emergency fund with India committing $10 million initially for it, and asserted that the best way to deal with the pandemic was by coming together and not growing apart.
“Prime Minister Modi’s views and action plan to combat the novel corona-virus with SAARC leaders is laudable. His strategy to take proactive steps with graded response is a smart approach to tackle this complex and unprecedented situation,” said President of USA India Chamber of Commerce (USAIC).
WHO hails efforts of Modi government in combating corona pandemic’
The World Health Organisation (WHO) hailed the efforts taken by Narendra Modi-led government in combating the novel corona virus pandemic which began in the Chinese city of Wuhan, killing more than 7,177 people worldwide so far.
Speaking to reporters after holding a meeting on 17 March, 2020 with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Henk Bekedam, the WHO Representative to India, said that the commitment of the Indian government has been very impressive. He also appreciated the Indian Council of Medical Research (IMCR) for managing to isolate the strains of Sars-Cov-2.
“I think the commitment of the Indian government from the top level — the Prime Minister’s office himself — has been enormous, very impressive. This is one of the reasons why India is doing very well. I am very impressed that everyone has been mobilized,” he said.
“We have very good research capacity in India and especially at the ICMR and the Department of Health Research. They have been able to isolate the virus, (and) now India will continue to be part of the research community,” he added.
Earlier, India’s top virology laboratory, the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Virology (ICMR-NIV) in Pune, had been successful in isolating the new strain of corona virus. This is the first step towards speeding up the process of the development of drugs and vaccines for COVID-19.