Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked Indians under lockdown to switch off all lights at home at 9 pm Sunday (April 5) and light candles or diyas -- or use the flashlights on their mobile phones -- to mark the national fight against the coronavirus outbreak. PM Modi asked his compatriots to do this for nine minutes.

"At that time, if you have turned off all the lights of your homes, and each one of us in all directions has lit a diya, we will experience the superpower of light, clearly illuminating the common purpose we are all fighting for," he said.

"In that light, in that lustre, in that radiance, let us resolve in our minds that we are not alone, that no one is alone."

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said he expected Prime Minister Narendra Modi to announce steps to tackle India's economic woes, including relief measures for poor people hit hard by the lockdown.

In his special address today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said a recent show of national solidarity -- the public clapped and banged utensils on March 22 to show appreciation for essential service providers during a "janata curfew" -- was a model being followed by other countries.

The prime minister's comments came during his first address to the nation after declaring a countrywide lockdown in an effort to slow the outbreak of the new coronavirus.

The lockdown began at midnight on March 24 and is scheduled to end on April 14: a three-week period.

Source: India Today