France stands ready to provide support to India, says President Macron amidst COVID crisis

NEW DELHINew Delhi [India], April 23 (ANI): France stands ready to provide its support to India in its fight against COVID-19, said French President Emmanuel Macron, as the pandemic situation in the country deteriorated with over 3 lakh infections being reported in a day.

"I want to send a message of solidarity to the Indian people, facing a resurgence of COVID-19 cases. France is with you in this struggle, which spares no-one. We stand ready to provide our support," French Ambassador Emmanuel Lenin tweeted Macron's message on Friday.

India has reported 3,32,730 new COVID19 cases on Friday with 2,263 fatalities in the last 24 hours, as per Union Health Ministry. The country's caseload has topped 1.62 crores. The death toll due to infection stands at 1,86,920.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in an address to the nation Tuesday evening, called the second Covid wave a "toofan" (storm) that has swept the country.

The worsening COVID-19 situation has seen a surge in the demand for medical oxygen and beds for the COVID-19 patients and many states are reporting an acute shortage in essential medical supplies.

Availability of oxygen is a key element in the treatment of certain medical conditions in the COVID infection.

With the COVID-19 situation worsening, many countries have imposed travel restrictions on travellers from India.

France on Wednesday announced that it will impose a 10-day quarantine for travellers arriving from India in the coming days to prevent the spread of a COVID-19 variant found in India.

The UAE has banned travel from India for 10 days from Sunday. Passengers who have transited through India in the last 14 days are also not permitted to board from any other point to the UAE, the Gulf News reported.

Recently, the United Kingdom added India to its travel "red list" on a precautionary basis after reporting 103 cases of a coronavirus variant first identified in India.The Russian Embassy's visa section temporarily ceased its operations until further notice due to India's COVID-19 situation, it announced on Monday.

As COVID-19 cases soar, the United States has also issued a 'Level 4 (Very High)' warning for potential travellers to India asking them to "avoid all travel" to the country even if they are fully vaccinated.

Hong Kong on Tuesday announced the suspension of all flights connecting with India for 14 days amid the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the region. The authorities have also suspended flights from Pakistan and the Philippines.