Coronavirus: 'Namaste' emerges as most preferred form of pleasantries

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Mar 13, 2020

9:16AM

Coronavirus: 'Namaste' emerges as most preferred form of pleasantries

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With the declaration of coronavirus pandemic, Namaste, an Indian way of greeting, instead of the normal handshake, has emerged as the most preferred form of pleasantries to reduce physical contact with others.

Prince Charles on Wednesday spotted greeting people with a namaste at the London Palladium. The video of Prince of Wales bringing out his hand for a shake and then suddenly switching to namaste has gone viral. With the number of coronavirus positive case reaching an alarming number of 460 in the UK, people, including the Royal Family are taking these measures.

Mindful of the coronavirus outbreak, French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday welcomed King Felipe of Spain and his wife in the courtyard of the Elysee Palace in Paris by pressing his palms together and bowing slightly.

Earlier on 4th March in a Press Conference, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked his countrymen to adopt namaste and ditch the handshake. He even demonstrated how to do a namaste.

Last Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had urged people not to panic and said the world is shifting towards greeting someone from handshakes to namaste. He said if by any means people have forgotten to use namaste, then it is the right time to do so.