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Coronavirus

India puts 1.3bn people under unprecedented lockdown

Modi orders $2bn boost to medical infrastructure in coronavirus fight

People travel in a crowded bus to return to their cities and villages on March 23 before the lockdown in Kolkata.   © Reuters

NEW DELHI -- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday announced a 21-day lockdown across the world's second most populous nation, dramatically escalating the country's efforts to combat the new coronavirus.

"If we want to restrict the spread of coronavirus, we will have to break its chain of infection," Modi said during his second televised address in less than a week. "You must remember that a single step outside your home can bring a dangerous pandemic like corona inside."

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