‘Corona curfew, Tika Utsav’: PM Modi asks States to focus on Covid-19 testing

• Noting that administration was appearing lax in many states with daily COVID-19 cases hitting new peaks, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday urged chief ministers to strengthen their efforts for the next 2-3 weeks to check the spread of the virus on a "war-footing" and proposed to call the night curfew clamped in many places as "corona curfew" to maintain public awareness about the pandemic. He also called for observing a vaccine festival between April 11-14 to inoculate the maximum number of eligible beneficiaries. April 11 is the birth anniversary of noted social reformer Jyotirao Phule, he noted. In his virtual interaction with chief ministers to discuss the pandemic situation and the ongoing vaccination drive, Modi strongly defended the current eligibility criteria for vaccination amid demand by some states, ruled by opposition parties, to open the shot for all above 18 years. Watch the full video for more details.