Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N. Chandrababu Naidu lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday for taking a 'bold and statesman-like decision' to extend the nation-wide lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Naidu said that Modi was giving priority to saving the lives of people despite the deepening economic crisis in the country.
"I told the PM that under his efficient leadership, the right decision was made on lockdown. That helped India stand in the forefront of the battle against the virus. Many other countries are facing problems. You are building national consensus in the right spirit. Now testing should be increased and people should be prepared for the future struggle," the TDP chief told a news conference in Amaravati.
The former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, who had bitterly criticised Modi during the Lok Sabha election campaign last year, revealed on Tuesday that he had called up Modi on Monday. "Today (Tuesday), at 8.30 am, I received a call back from the Prime Minister and we discussed the way forward in the fight against COVID-19," he said.
Naidu said that the whole world was shaken in this battle against the 'invisible enemy' even as 20 lakh people contracted the virus globally, while 1.15 lakh patients had lost their lives.
"Had Modi not announced lockdown, India's positive cases would have gone up to 8 lakh as per a forecast as against the present 10,500 reported from all over the country till now," he said.
The infection transmission is very rapid in India as the first thousand cases were reported in 59 days, the second thousand cases in 3 days and the third thousand cases in two days with total reaching 10,450 now, the TDP chief pointed out.
Naidu expressed concern over the economic blow which has led to a spectrum of socio-economic and psychological problems that require a lot of courage and discipline to successfully stand against the 'unknown killer'.
"Even a super power like the US is totally shaken and not able to handle coronavirus. The world's commercial capital of New York lies shattered with officials left alone to bury the dead with no family members turning up," Naidu said.
The leader of opposition accused Jaganmohan Reddy government of adopting a "strange attitude". Naidu cautioned that it was no time for petty political advantages when other states and countries were vigorously fighting against the deadly disease.
Naidu said the Andhra Pradesh government should deliver essential services to the doorstep of poor families just like in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
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