New Delhi: Singapore Government called the Indian High Commissioner on Wednesday to convey their strong objection to the comments made by Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, The Indian High Commissioner clarified that Delhi CM is not competent to name COVID-19 variants and that he has no power on aviation control of the country.
Minister of External Affairs, Dr. S. Jaishankar also thanked Singapore for their help in these tough times for India on his Twitter account. He tweeted, ” Singapore and India have been solid partners in the fight against Covid-19. Appreciate Singapore’s role as a logistics hub and oxygen supplier. Their gesture of deploying military aircraft to help us speaks of our exceptional relationship.”
Singapore and India have been solid partners in the fight against Covid-19.
Appreciate Singapore’s role as a logistics hub and oxygen supplier. Their gesture of deploying military aircraft to help us speaks of our exceptional relationship. @VivianBala https://t.co/x7jcmoyQ5a
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) May 19, 2021
He further clarified that ‘Delhi CM does not speak for India’
However, irresponsible comments from those who should know better can damage long-standing partnerships.
So, let me clarify- Delhi CM does not speak for India.
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) May 19, 2021
Earlier, Singapore’s Ministry of Health (MOH) denied the claims of Delhi CM about a new variant being found in the country. The statement issued by the ministry said, “There is no truth whatsoever in the assertions found within the reports. There is no “Singapore variant”. The strain that is prevalent in many of the COVID-19 cases in recent weeks is the B.1.617.2 variant, which originated in India. Phylogenetic testing has shown this B.1.617.2 variant to be associated with several clusters in Singapore.”
Amid concerns of a third wave of COVID-19 in the country, which according to many heath experts is likely to target children, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said a new COVID variant detected in Singapore is said to be deadly for children and may bring in third wave in the country.
In this regard, the Delhi Chief Minister has requested the Central government to immediately suspend air services with Singapore and to work out vaccination options for children on priority. In a tweet today, Kejriwal said, “The new COVID variant in Singapore is being said to be extremely dangerous for children, in India it may come as a third wave. My appeal to the central government: 1. Air services with Singapore to be canceled with immediate effect
2. Priority on vaccine options should be worked out for children too.”
सिंगापुर में आया कोरोना का नया रूप बच्चों के लिए बेहद ख़तरनाक बताया जा रहा है, भारत में ये तीसरी लहर के रूप में आ सकता है।
केंद्र सरकार से मेरी अपील:
1. सिंगापुर के साथ हवाई सेवाएं तत्काल प्रभाव से रद्द हों
2. बच्चों के लिए भी वैक्सीन के विकल्पों पर प्राथमिकता के आधार पर काम हो— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) May 18, 2021
