All-party meeting called by Mamata Banerjee on Monday to discuss Novel Coronavirus situation in the state

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has called an all-party meeting at the state administrative headquarters on Monday to discuss the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) situation in the state. All the recognised and registered political parties in the state will be called to the meeting. The state cabinet meeting that had been scheduled earlier, has been cancelled however.

Banerjee has been taking some major steps to prevent the spread of the virus, as three persons have tested positive in the state so far. All three had returned to Kolkata in the past few days from abroad. While two of them had come in contact with some people – including their family members – the third person, a young woman, had gone to Beliaghata ID Hospital, straight from the NSC Bose International Airport on Friday. She had returned from Edinburgh, while the two others had returned from London. The young woman who returned from Edinburgh was admitted to Beliaghata ID Hospital, and tested positive on Friday night.

Political parties have been saying that they will cooperate with the state administration to fight COVID-19 and to ensure it doesn’t spread. The chief minister will discuss the steps the government has been taking and what can be done in the coming days.

Hundreds are in home quarantine and in state hospitals and special facilities created over the past few days. Meanwhile, private hospitals are also creating facilities to handle patients. Overall, the chief minister has repeatedly asked people to not panic and to follow the basic health guidelines.