Commander of the Army Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva says that according to the specialist doctors there is no community spread of COVID-19 in the country.

The Army Chief, joining the TV Derana breakfast show ‘Derana Aruna’ addressed the widespread rumors that COVID-19 infected people have been found in the society and that proper reports on CIOVID-19 deaths are not published.

“Sri Lanka’s greatest team doctors are with us in the National Operations Centre for Prevention of COVID-19 Outbreak (NOCPCO). I can only say what the doctors give me.

They say that the meaning of a community spread can in no way outline the situation currently prevailing in the country. The doctors say there are clear contacts for every person infected with the virus. That is why they say that there is no community spread as of yet.

They are the specialists in the NOCPCO. We are in the military, we are not in the medical profession. However, they say that considering all the methods they use to analyze it, the situation is not a community spread. We still have two or three seemingly isolated cases, but once these are investigated, it becomes clear that there is a connection again.“

Speaking on the rumors that there are dead bodies of COVID-19 patients in the Infectious Diseases Hospital and the Colombo National Hospital, the Army Chief said that while there have been two deaths upon admittance at the National Hospital, it is still not determined whether they died of COVID-19.

“Two persons who were admitted to the National Hospital last night have died on admission. It appears to be that they have died under normal conditions.

However, these days, even if a person dies under normal circumstances, the body will be examined and a PCR examination would be carried out. It is to determine whether they were infected with COVID-19.

The situation of the deceased will be known today after the PCR test which will be done shortly. Until then, it is not possible to confirm that these were COVID-19 deaths.”