Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the nation on April 14, the prime minister’s office has confirmed. During his address, the prime minister is expected to make an announcement on the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown which was announced last month. Prime Minister announced the 21-day nationwide coronavirus lockdown on March 25 to break the chain of Covid-19 infection in the country.

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“Prime Minister @narendramodi will address the nation at 10 AM on 14th April 2020,” PMO said in a tweet on Monday afternoon. Before this, the prime minister has addressed the nation on three different occasions over the ongoing coronavirus crisis. 

In a meeting with chief ministers last week, the Prime Minister was urged by heads of all states to extend the lockdown by at least a fortnight. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has hinted that a decision in this regard has already been taken. 

“PM has taken correct decision to extend lockdown. Today, India’s position is better than many developed countries because we started lockdown early. If it is stopped now, all gains would be lost. To consolidate, it is imp to extend it,” Kejriwal tweeted on Saturday. 

Several states like Telangana, Maharahstra, Odisha and West Bengal have already extended the lockdown till April 30. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik-led Odisha government was the first state to extend the lockdown beyond April 14.

Despite the lockdown, the number of cases in India are on the rise. On Monday, the tally crossed the 9,000-mark with 9,152 cases. According to the Ministry of Health, India now has 7,987 active Covid-19 cases while as many as 856 patients have recovered or discharged. The coronavirus death toll in the country stands at 308.