Lockdown not enough to eradicate Covid-19 pandemic: WHO

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of World Health Organisation (WHO), on Wednesday said that a lockdown, which is being implemented by several countries to combat Covid-19, will not be enough to eradicate the coronavirus pandemic from the world.

"To slow the spread of Covid-19, many countries introduced "lockdown" measures. But on their own, these measures will not extinguish epidemics. We call on all countries to use this time to attack the novel coronavirus. You have created a second window of opportunity," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a daily briefing.

"Asking people to stay at home and shutting down population movement is buying time and reducing the pressure on health systems. But on their own, these measures will not extinguish epidemics," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus added.

He further said: "We call on all countries who have introduced so-called lockdown measures, to use this time to attack the virus. You have created a second window of opportunity, the question is how will you use it?"

While reinforcing the measures of testing and treating, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: "Aggressive measures to find, isolate, test, treat and trace is not only the best and fastest way out of extreme social and economic restrictions, but they're also the best way to prevent them."

The number of people infected with the novel coronavirus worldwide has exceeded 4,14,179 over 18,440 have died, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in its daily coronavirus disease (Covid-19) situation report.