National Task Force Recommends Hydroxychloroquine For COVID-19 Patients

The terror of the coronavirus has taken the entire country in its grip. Amid this, a task force constituted by the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) has suggested paramedical staff involved in taking care of COVID-19 patients to use hydroxychloroquine drug.

The task force has clarified that this medicine is meant for prevention of the virus and not for its treatment.

The ICMR also said that 12 laboratories across the country have been registered for the ongoing fight against COVID-19. These laboratories have 12,000 collection centres in the country, from where samples can be procured.

According to the Health Ministry, at the moment, the number of patients in the country has reached 415 and eight people have died from the coronavirus. The eighth death took place in West Bengal. The deceased had recently returned from Italy.

At present, curfew has been imposed in Punjab and Maharashtra and 19 states and union territories are under complete lockdown. 

Domestic flight services have also been halted from March 24 midnight.

Bus, train and metro services had already been suspended earlier.

Several passengers are stranded at New #Delhi railway station without food as the country partially went into #lockdown and #rail services got suspended amid the coronavirus lockdown @ojhaanjali reports#coronavirusinindia pic.twitter.com/XSmD5uIWtz

— GoNewsIndia (@GoNews_India) March 23, 2020