COVID-19: Govt issues advisory asking people to wear ‘homemade face covers’

Team Udayavani, Apr 4, 2020, 1:33 PM IST

New Delhi: As India witnesses a spike in coronavirus cases, the Central government on Saturday issued an advisory asking people to wear “homemade face covers” particularly when they step out of their houses in order to curb the spread of COVID-19.

In the ‘Advisory on the use of Homemade Protective Cover for Face and Mouth’, the government said the use of such masks will help in protecting the community at large and that certain countries have claimed benefits of homemade face masks for the general public.

The number of COVID-19 cases in the country rose to 2,902 while the death toll increased to 68 on Saturday.

In the US, President Donald Trump has recommended to all citizens the voluntary use non-medical masks as an additional public health measure to fight the deadly coronavirus while keeping medical-grade masks available for health workers.

The US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended that Americans wear basic cloth or fabric masks that can be either purchased online or simply made at home.