Rahul Gandhi questions COVID-19 testing speed, says shining torches in sky won't solve crisis

The Congress MP also attached to his tweet a chart that showed India was testing only 29 people per million.

PTI photo

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday (April 4) reiterated his stand that not enough tests are being conducted in the country to contain the spread of coronavirus. The former party chief also questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi's appeal to people to light lamps on the evening of April 5, saying 'shining torches in the sky won't solve the problem'. 

"India is simply not testing enough to fight the Covid-19 virus. Making people clap & shining torches in the sky isn’t going to solve the problem," Rahul's post on Twitter read.

He also attached to his tweet a chart, released by the Congress, that showed India was testing only 29 people per million. Pakistan is testing 67 people per million, Sri Lanka 97, the United Kingdom 1,891, Germany 5,812,Italy 7,122 and South Korea 7,622 per million.

India is simply not testing enough to fight the #Covid19 virus.

Making people clap & shining torches in the sky isn't going to solve the problem. pic.twitter.com/yMlYbiixxW — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 4, 2020

His remarks came a day after Modi in his third special address to the nation in the last fortnight appealed people to switch off lights of their homes at 9 p.m. on Sunday for 9 minutes and light a diya or a candle or the flashlight of phones to dispel the darkness and gloom brought about by the coronavirus outbreak.

On Saturday, the Covid-19 tally in India rose to 3,072, with 75 deaths.