The Centre on Wednesday banned the export of alcohol-based hand sanitizers to boost its availability in the domestic market amid coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic.
"Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are prohibited for exports," directorate general of foreign trade (DGFT) said in a notification. Sanitisers are used as a disinfectant to prevent the spread of the deadly virus.
The Central government has been taking several steps along with the states and UTs for prevention, containment and management of COVID-19 through a graded, pre-emptive and pro-active approach. These are being regularly reviewed and monitored at the highest level.
Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Harsh Vardhan on Wednesday stressed on the need to ensure that non-COVID essential services are not neglected. Also, states need to ensure that screening and testing of Severe Acute Respiratory Infections (SARI) / Influenza-Like Illness (ILI) cases are undertaken, which shall help in identification of any emerging hotspots and timely appropriate strategy for their management.
Aggressive behaviour change communication exercise needs to be taken for removing stigma against reporting COVID-19, which will contribute towards timely reporting, clinical management, and reduction in fatality rates, he stressed.
