IAS officer's tweet on boy washing hands goes viral

25/03/2020, ROHAN PREMKUMAR, UDHAGAMANDALAM

A tweet posted by the Director of Tamil Nadu Small Tea Growers’ Industrial Cooperative Tea Factories Federation, Coonoor, Supriya Sahu, of a young boy demonstrating correct handwashing technique to prevent the spread of COVID -19 has gone viral.

Retweeted by the Director General of the World Health Organisation, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the 24-second clip has been watched more than 50,000 times over the last few days.

In the clip, the boy demonstrates how to wash hands thoroughly to prevent the spread of virus.

When contacted, Ms. Sahu, who is also the monitoring officer for the Nilgiris district, said that she saw the boy near Nanjanad. When she asked him the precautions he and his family were taking to prevent the spread of coronavirus, he had told her that they were washing hands regularly.

“What this shows is that the officers and medical staff working on the frontline have got their message across to people living in the interior villages. If children know how essential it is to keep their hands clean, then it is a sign that the entire community does too,” said Ms. Sahu.