Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday addressed the nation and said that the country is in a stable situation with respect to the coronavirus pandemic, however, he added that we must not be careless and follow the COVID-19 protocols.

"In this festive season, markets are bright again but we need to remember that the lockdown might have ended but COVID-19 still persists. With efforts of every Indian over the last 7-8 months, India is in a stable situation we must not let it deteriorate," PM Modi said.

"Today, the recovery rate in the country is good. The fatality rate is low. 5,500 people out of every 10 Lakh population in India are infected, whereas in countries like the US & Brazil this figure is around 25,000," he added.

"The fatality rate in India is 83 out of every 10 Lakh population in India, whereas it is more than 600 in countries like the US, Brazil, Spain, Britain," Prime Minister Narendra Modi further said.

He also said that India has more than 90 lakh beds for COVID-19 patients. "There are 12,000 quarantine centres, around 2,000 testing labs. Number of tests will cross 10 Crores soon. In our fight against COVID, rise in the number of tests has been our strength," he added.

PM Modi also said that we must follow the COVID-19 protocols until and unless a vaccine is developed. He added that the government will take efforts in making the vaccine accessible to every Indian as soon as it is made available.

This was PM Modi's seventh address to the nation since the pandemic's outbreak. In his last such address, he had on June 30 announced extension of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), a programme to provide free ration for over 80 crore people, mostly poor, by five more months till November end.