India Should Ramp Up Its Measures to Tracle COVID-19 Effect, Should Not Have to Choose Between Lives and Livelihood: Niti Aayog VC Rajiv Kumar
Niti Aayog VC Rajiv Kumarsaid India should not have to choose between lives and livelihood amid the Covid-19 pandemic, as enough resources are available with public authorities at all levels to contain COVID-19. He said that Indians need to get act together so that the next time a situation like this arises, they are better prepared.
New Delhi, April 11: Niti Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar on Saturday said India should not have to choose between lives and livelihood amid the COVID-19 pandemic, as enough resources are available with public authorities at all levels to contain COVID-19. He was of the opinion that India should ramp up its measures to tracle COVID-19 effect.
Expressing his opinion on the issue of disaster management preparation and resource availability at at a webinar hosted by a journalism school, Kumar said that India should ramp up its measures to tracle COVID-19 effect. He said, as quoted by Economic Times, "I hope we will not have to continuously try this tradeoff or balance between saving lives and livelihoods." Migrant Workers Torch Vehicles, Create Ruckus in Surat While Demanding Wages After Reports of Possible Extension of Coronavirus Lockdown in Gujarat Surface, Several Detained; Watch Video.
Adding on, he said, "I hope there will be enough resources available with public authorities at all levels to ensure that when it comes to situations like these, we have enough resources to support lives because livelihoods will get lost when you have lockdowns."
Stressing on better planning from future onwards, the NITI Aayog VC said, "We need to get our act together so that the next time we get into a situation like this, we are better prepared." Earlier, International Labour Organization (ILO) had said that 400 million Indians working in the informal economy are on the brisk to bear the brunt of crisis.
Meanwhile, the number of coronavirus cases in India has jumped to 7447 with the highest single-day increase in infections and deaths, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Saturday morning. According to the latest data from the ministry, coronavirus cases hit a new one-day peak, with 1035 people getting infected in the past 24 hours. The death toll mounted to 239 with 40 fatalities.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 11, 2020 01:10 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).