Viral message claiming WHO has released lockdown schedule is fake: Govt

At a time Indians are anxious about the government’s next move on the coronavirus lockdown, a message attributed to World Health Organization (WHO) is doing the rounds on social media.

The message says India is following the four-phase lockdown endorsed by WHO to control the spread of coronavirus. India Today Anti Fake News War Room (AFWA) has found the claim to be false.

What is the message?

The message is viral on Facebook. The archived versions can be seen here.

The message is about protocols and procedures of lockdown periods said to be released by WHO. It says the WHO has divided the lockdown period into four stages and the Indian government is also following the same.

According to the message, in the first step, a one-day lockdown will be observed, followed by a 21-day lockdown in phase 2. This will be followed by a relaxation period of five days.

After five days, the stage 3 of the lockdown will be enforced, which will last for 28 days. This again will be followed by a relaxation period of five days. The final lockdown will be of 15 days.

AFWA probe

To verify the claim, AFWA reached out to a representative of WHO in India, who clarified that the message is false and the organisation has not released any such protocol for lockdown periods.

No country in the world is following the lockdown pattern as seen in the viral message. Each country has its own rules and regulations for lockdown that can be seen in a report by Business Insider.

It is true that India was under lockdown (janta curfew) for a day on March 22 and then for another 21 days which will end on April 14 as said in the viral message. But cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba had recently said that as of now, there is no plan of extending the lockdown. However, it is difficult to say what further steps the government will take.