NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the economy is showing "green shoots" as the country emerges from the coronavirus lockdown.

The PM said that the fight against the pandemic is a fine example of cooperative federalism where the Centre and the states are working together. "This period will also be remembered for how we worked together, presenting the best example of cooperative federalism," he said.

In his opening remarks at a meeting with chief ministers and Lt Governors of 21 states and union territories, the PM said one laxity can undo what has been achieved in the fight against COVID-19 and urged people not to lower their guard against the killer virus, adding as "Unlock 1" completes two weeks, it is important to review the experiences.

Chief ministers of Punjab (Amarinder Singh), Tripura (Biplab Kumar Deb), Goa (Pramod Sawant) were among those who attended the virtual meet. Home Minister Amit Shah also participated in the conference.

Modi said "timing" is very important to deal with any crisis and "decisions taken at the right time have helped a lot in controlling the coronavirus infection in the country".

"Rail-road, air-sea, all routes have been opened. But despite this, despite our country being so populous, coronavirus infection in India has not shown the same devastating effect that it has shown in other countries," he told the chief ministers.

"Today, the recovery rate in India is above 50 per cent ... Death of anyone from coronavirus is tragic. For us, the death of even one Indian is discomforting. But it is also true that today India is among the countries in the world with the lowest deaths are due to coronavirus," he said.

Modi said it is unimaginable to move out without a mask, and people to follow social distancing norms and wash hands regularly for at least 20 seconds.

On Wednesday, the PM will interact with chief ministers of 15 states, including Maharashtra, West Bengal, Delhi, Karnataka, Gujarat, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, and the LG of Jammu and Kashmir. These are the states where COVID-19 cases are on a much higher side.

Watch his address here:

#IndiaFightsCorona:

Watch Prime Minister @narendramodi's live interaction on COVID-19, with Chief Ministers of all States/UTs via video conferencing. @PMOIndia @drharshvardhan @MoHFW_INDIA https://t.co/bWhrVLgmVy
— #IndiaFightsCorona (@COVIDNewsByMIB) June 16, 2020