New Delhi: Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Monday said that India is in “local transmission and limited community transmission” phase of COVID-19.

“This SOP [Standard Operating Procedure] is applicable to the current phase of COVID-19 pandemic in India (local transmission and limited community transmission), wherein as per the plan of action, all suspect cases are admitted to isolation facilities,” a statement from the ministry said.

COVID-19 cases in India cross 1,000-mark

India has reported 1,071 cases and 29 deaths due to coronavirus till Monday morning. The procedures were meant as a guide to be used for training ambulance drivers and technicians in transporting COVID-19 patients.

Health Ministry clarifies that the country is still in the local transmission stage, if it reaches the community transmission stage, the Health Ministry will admit it but country is not there yet. #COVID19 https://t.co/0xtjkV7LEW pic.twitter.com/IWoQAL1Rz8

— ANI (@ANI) March 30, 2020

They were also aimed at supporting programme officers in “monitoring functionality and infection prevention protocols of the ambulances.”

On Sunday, the India Council of Medical Research (ICMR) found that at least 10 per cent people have tested positive for COVID-19 due to severe acute respiratory illness (SARI), and also said that there is no community transmission of the virus so far.

R Gangakhedkar, a scientist at ICMR, told ANI that out of 110 such people, who were tested due to SARI hospitalisation, about 11 of them have tested positive for novel coronavirus.

On March 24, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced a 21-day lockdown in the entire country effective from midnight to deal with the spread of coronavirus, saying that “social distancing” is the only option to deal with the disease. (ANI)