'We have to understand the art of living with coronavirus until a vaccine is available': Nitin Gadkari

In an interview to NDTV, reacting to the revival package detailed by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for MSMEs and the economy at large, he said creating positivity amid months of lockdown and economic crisis triggered by COVID-19 health emergency was a challenge.

The Minister in charge of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and also Road Transport said once the vaccine is available, the problem with coronavirus can be resolved, but till then "we have to understand the art of living with coronavirus".

"We have to understand the art of living with corona. This is not a natural virus. It is an artificial virus and now many countries in the whole world - they are researching on it for a vaccine. The vaccine is not available, it is expected that vaccine will be available as soon as possible, then there will be no problem," Gadkari said.

Asserting that the virus is not "natural"  and from laboratory, he said a good methodology to detect it immediately is needed.

"We need some good methodology for that so that we can immediately identify the virus. This is unexpected because this a virus from laboratory, this is not a natural virus, so the world is now prepared, India is now prepared, scientists are prepared. After finding a solution for that, we can create confidence. After taking a vaccine there will be no problem," he said in the interview.

The minister maintained that a vaccine will remove the fear of the virus from people's mind.

"We need to fight coronavirus but we are also fighting an economic war. We are a poor country and can't increase the lockdown from month to month," he told NDTV, adding that the migrant workers across the country left for their native states out of fear and hoped that they would get back to work once the business reopens.

In a bid by the Modi government to fight back the economic impact of COVID-19 outbreak, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday announced several categories of collateral-free loans for Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME)s as a part of the Atmanirbhar Bharat Yojana (Self-reliant India) announced by PM Narendra Modi on Tuesday during his national address.

The MSME sector employs nearly employs more than 50 crore workers in India and contributes a quarter of India's $2.9 trillion economy.

After the lockdown was clamped on March 25, thousands of migrant workers in different parts of India were rendered jobless and struggled to return home amid fears of coronavirus infection.

In order to give relief to the migrant labourers, who have been hit the most by the coronavirus induced lockdown, the PM CARES (Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations) Fund Trust on Wednesday allocated Rs. 1000 crores for the care of migrant labourers out of the Rs. 3100 Crore earmarked to fight  COVID-19.

A sum of approximately Rs.2000 crore will be earmarked for the purchase of ventilators, and Rs.100 crores will be given to support vaccine development from the remaining amount.