Covid-19 Not Over Yet Completely, Be Alert And Follow Govt's Guidelines: President Ram Nath Kovind

President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday cautioned the people that Covid-19 is not completely over yet and asked them to be alert and follow all the government's guidelines. He said during the coronavirus pandemic, masks have been used as an effective means of protection against the virus.

Kovind was speaking after laying the foundation stone for Bhagwan Mahavir super speciality hospital in Delhi.

Speaking about the importance of face masks, the President said, "We know that the introduction of surgical masks into modern history dates back to the year 1897 when surgeons began using masks to protect themselves from bacteria during operations".

"But Jain saints understood the importance of masks centuries ago. By covering their mouth and nose, they were not only able to avoid killing living beings but they were also able to prevent the entry of microorganisms into their body," he said.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, masks have been used as an effective means of protection against the virus, the President was quoted as having said this in a statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

He said that priority has been given to service in the Jain tradition. Kovind noted that a state-of-the-art Bhagwan Mahavir Super Speciality Hospital with 250 beds would be completed by 2023, the statement said.

He said that it is a matter of happiness that in this super speciality hospital, high-quality health services will be made available to all sections of the society at affordable rates, and free of cost to the poor.

The President said he was also happy to note that this hospital has rendered its services as Covid Care Hospital during the pandemic. He cautioned the people that Covid is not completely over yet, the statement said.
The President appealed to all citizens to be alert and follow all the government's guidelines, it said. He said that Jain saints also laid great emphasis on walking to underline the importance of physical exercise.

Kovind expressed confidence that this hospital would follow the path of making humanity healthy on the basis of scientific traditions shown by the saints. The President said the "Jain tradition teaches us to adopt a balanced and environment-friendly lifestyle".

"The way of life and eating habits in present times is not suitable for nature. We know that Jain saints and their disciplined followers eat their food only between sunrise and sunset.

Adopting a lifestyle according to the daily movement of the Sun is an easy way to stay healthy. This is the lesson we get from the ideal lifestyle of Jain saints," he said.

Kovind said that the integration of such scientific traditions with modern medical systems in hospitals will be helpful for a healthy life.