14th April, 2020
Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India has extended the nationwide lockdown after the number of coronavirus cases rose above 10,000.
The earlier three-week shutdown has ended.
India will continue its lockdown until May 3 in efforts to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Modi said to his 1.3 billion people on Monday night:
“Till May 3, every Indian will have to stay in lockdown. I request all Indians that we stop the coronavirus from spreading to other areas”.
“The nation has benefited greatly from social distancing and lockdown.
“If we only look at it from the economic standpoint it looks expensive – we’ve had to pay a huge cost, but before the lives of Indians, this has no comparison. “
The latest government data shows 10,541 people had been infected with coronavirus.
The infection had killed 358 people as at Monday night.
Experts fear India’s infected figure could be higher.
But low testing had kept it low.