People who stay home during the lockdown as well as those compelled to venture out to render essential services need to take standard precautions to avoid picking up the virus, community medicine specialists said.

“These are things people should be doing anyway — but even more diligently now,” said Rashmi Kundapur, professor of community medicine at the K.S. Hegde Medical Academy and member of the Indian Association of Preventive and Social Medicine.

Even at home, people are not insulated from potential exposure, Kundapur said. When people pick up groceries or milk packets or fruits and vegetables, they could come into contact with the virus if it has been deposited there by an infected person.

“People need to wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly — we should be doing this anyway,” Kundapur said.

“But now more thoroughly than before — leave them soaked for some time and then wash them.”

Those who have to go out need to ensure that they do not at any point touch their mouth, nose or eyes with their hands, she said. And on returning, people should immediately change and wash their clothes, and wash their hands.

The guidelines for the lockdown say people need to stay home and come out only for essential services, while observing social distancing guidelines — keeping a distance of at least one metre from others.

For people with no health disorders or respiratory symptoms, life at home should be as normal as possible, said Tulika Goswami, associate professor of community medicine at the Tezpur Medical College, Assam, also an east zone member of the IAPSM.

“Hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette need to be followed at all times,” she said.

Washing hands regularly and thoroughly with soap and water or, if you are not at home, sanitising with an alcohol-based hand-rub is something everyone should keep doing.

Good respiratory hygiene means covering your mouth and nose with your bent elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze. A used tissue should be disposed of immediately.

The lockdown follows an advisory from the health ministry earlier this week that urged people to avoid visits to hospitals for routine outpatient consultations. It would be best to seek even scheduled routine medical consultations on phone.

However, Goswami said, anyone who develops respiratory symptoms should contact health authorities and let them decide whether they need to be tested for the coronavirus.

India’s count of coronavirus patients increased on Sunday to 396, with three additional deaths and a cumulative death count of seven. But medical experts say the true scale of the epidemic in the country remains unclear.