‘Respected Prime Minister...’: Rahul Gandhi mounts attack over ventilators, masks as coronavirus number pass 400

Rahul Gandhi posed the questions on Twitter in Hindi.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has posed two questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the number of patients of the coronavirus-related Covid-19 disease jumped to 415 on Monday.

The number of Covid-19 patients in India jumped to 415 as 19 news cases were reported from across the country. (PTI)

Rahul Gandhi posed the questions on Twitter in Hindi.

“Respected Prime Minister, WHO’s (World Health Organization’s) suggestion. Rather than keeping a sufficient stock of ventilators and surgical masks, why didn’t the Indian government allow their import till March 19?” the former Congress president asked.

“Which forces prompted this mess? Isn’t this a criminal conspiracy?” he questioned.

Rahul Gandhi’s question came as experts said the estimated 40,000 working ventilators in India will be inadequate in case there is a surge in Covid-19 infections that, in approximately 5% of the cases, sends patients to intensive care units (ICU) with acute breathing problems.

The number of Covid-19 patients in India jumped to 415 as 19 news cases were reported from across the country, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said on Monday. And, at least seven people have died.

The government has banned exports of ventilators, cancelled elective surgeries to keep ICU beds on standby, and imposed a lockdown across the country to ensure social isolation in a bid to curb the spread of Covid-19.

It has also restricted trains, buses, Metros across India in order to contain the outbreak.