When Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for Janta curfew, quite a few film folk went on social media to stress on his words.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had urged citizens to observe Janta curfew by not going out of their homes from 7 am to 9 am on Sunday amid novel coronavirus pandemic.
The prime minister thanked the people but said it was the start of a long battle, as he urged them to follow social distancing to stop the chain of transmission of Coronavirus which has infected 360 people and claimed seven lives in India.
Asking people to sacrifice "some weeks of yours, some time of yours", Modi said given that coronavirus has no cure yet, the only way to stay safe is to stay indoors.
Bollywood has been practising self-isolation for a few days now, especially on Sunday, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the Janta curfew.
Be it Mumbai, known as the city that never sleeps, Patna or Ahmedabad, life came to a standstill in the country as roads, railway stations and airports wore a deserted look and markets and establishments except those dealing in essential goods and services remained shut during the 14-hour self-imposed curfew that started at 7 am.
The Congress party has expressed outrage over the death of ex-serviceman Tsewang Tharchin, a Kargil War veteran, in firing by security forces during a protest in Ladakh. The incident occurred amidst ongoing protests for Sixth Schedule status for Ladakh, leading to continued curfew and detentions.
Some families also got together to clean their houses, for lunch and even board games, which they said has not happened in a long time.
As of now, the Indian Railways has cancelled 245 trains in order to restrict unnecessary travel due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The nationwide 'Janta Curfew' followed by the 21-day lockdown to combat the coronavirus outbreak have led to a significant reduction in pollution in the country, with 91 cities recording air quality in the 'good' and 'satisfactory' category on March 29, a Central Pollution Control Board report has stated. Travel restrictions and the closure of industries have helped reduce the pollution level, it said.
A baby girl born in Gorakhpur on the day of Janta Curfew has been named 'Corona', while a boy born a week later in Deoria district of the state has been named 'Lockdown'.
President Ram Nath Kovind along with First Lady Savita Kovind, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu and other leaders joined the fellow citizens on Sunday to express their gratitude towards all those who are safeguarding the health of the nation in wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
India's cricketing icon Sachin Tendulkar hailed the efforts of the medical professionals, who are working tirelessly round the clock to combat the coronavirus outbreak. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Thursday appealed to people to out in their balconies and clap to express their gratitude to the medical professionals combating the coronavirus outbreak. The appeal received a brilliant response as people across the country came out in their balconies and clapped to express their gratitude to the medical professionals.
Watch all the proceedings and debates.
The production company sent a missive to Shree Rajput Karni Sena and Shree Rajput Sabha Bhawan, its leaders claimed but alleged that the move was only a ploy "aimed at fooling".
From children to the elderly, common people to VIPs, all came out in balconies, lawns and terrace of their homes as the clock struck five, following an appeal by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to show gratitude to doctors, paramedics, police and other personnel associated with essential services when the country was observing an unprecedented 'Janta Curfew' on Sunday to check the spread of the virus.
India's sports fraternity joined the nation on Sunday in saluting its essential services providers engaged in the fight against COVID-19 by clapping for them and sharing messages and videos of gratitude on social media.
Cutting across party lines, chief ministers and others leaders urged the people to follow the self-imposed curfew from 7 am to 9 pm, noting that "social distancing" was key to breaking the chain of infection, as the number of coronavirus cases rose to 283 after 60 new cases were detected on Saturday, the highest so far in a day, and states like Maharashtra, Odisha and Bihar imposed partial lockdown till month end.
On Monday, Modi held a video conference meeting with chief ministers of all states to discuss the road ahead in India's fight against COVID-19.
India's cricket captain Virat Kohli and his actor wife Anushka Sharma on Friday issued a joint appeal for self-isolation to combat the dreaded COVID-19 pandemic, which has left the world in disarray. As they took turns to speak, Kohli said, "We are staying at home for our safety and for everyone else's one."
Here is a look at coronavirus-induced restrictions imposed by states and union territories.
The decision was taken at a high-level meeting of chief secretaries of all states and the cabinet secretary and the principal secretary to the prime minister. The districts where lockdown was announced include 10 districts each in Maharashtra and Kerala, six districts each in Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, five each in Karnataka and Haryana, three each in Tamil Nadu and Punjab.
This would be the prime minister's sixth address to the nation since the outbreak of the pandemic.
Kohli took to Twitter and posted a series of tweets in which he also urged people to adhere to the norms. He hailed all the medical professionals in the country and around the globe for all their fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
As the number of COVID-19 cases is witnessing a spike in India, religious places across the country remain closed to encourage social distancing, a key component in preventing the spread of the deadly coronavirus.
Hockey India had earlier donated 25 lakhs towards the cause on April 1. The decision to donate an additional 75 lakhs was taken by the Hockey India Executive Board.
The women agitators have been on a sit-in at Shaheen Bagh for over three months, protesting the newly amended Citizenship Act .
Here's what some states are doing to get a grip on the situation. Ruchika Chitravanshi & Aneesh Phadnis report
While all her teammates left for home after the junior camp ended on March 19, Suman decided to stay back at the SAI centre in Bengaluru with the senior sides and was stuck there for more than two and half months because of the nationwide lockdown.
The markaz (centre) in the south Delhi neighbourhood organised a Tabligh-e-Jamaat from March 1-15 and at least 2,000 people, including foreigners and Indians from across the country, attended it.
Like the rest of India, film folk like Lata Mangeshkar, Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar and Karan Johar came out on their balconies to clap and give a shout-out to people, who have been providing medical and other essential services during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, as part of PM Narendra Modi's Janta curfew initiative.
Maharashtra has reported the highest number of COVID-19 cases with 74, including three foreigners, followed by Kerala at 52 including seven foreign nationals.
Many people in the city fear that even going to markets could pose a threat and departmental stores have started reporting a gap in demand and supply of commodities.
'Like you have your first child, your first kiss, your first relationship... this was a first for me.' 'I've never done this before.' 'When it got over, there was a feeling of disbelief that we managed to attain this feat in a matter of three days.'
Markaz Nizamuddin, which is the international headquarters of Tabilghi Jamaat for close to 100 years, offered its premises for setting up a quarantine facility.
Vardhan said in India about 92 percent of the reported cases have mild symptoms, while oxygen therapy was required in 5.8 percent cases and intensive care in 1.7 percent cases.
Modi also said that people displayed unprecedented discipline and sense of service during the nationwide coronavirus lockdown
Online retailers pointed out that their delivery staff is being stopped by local police and urged authorities to streamline the movement of delivery agents and goods.
Kovind has also decided to defer purchase of the Presidential Limousine which was to be used for ceremonial occasions. 'The existing resources of the Rashtrapati Bhavan and the government will be shared and used for such occasions,' a communique said.
India's sports fraternity on Sunday joined the country in showing solidarity in the fight against the rapidly-spreading coronavirus pandemic by lighting lamps and candles in response to Prime Minster Narendra Modi's call to demonstrate the nation's collective resolve. PM Modi had appealed to the people to turn off lights and instead lit diyas, candles and other forms of light for nine minutes at 9pm IST on Sunday to show the nation's collective resolve to fight coronavirus.
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