India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong discussed the coronavirus situation in their countries over a phone call

The High Commission of India told The Straits Times that Prime Minister Modi had called Lee as part of his ongoing engagement with various world leaders on Covid-19.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee said in a Facebook post after the call that Singapore is in the midst of its circuit breaker period while India has implemented a nationwide lockdown since late March.

This was "not a simple decision" for India, which has a population of 1.3 billion people, Lee noted.

He said: "I thanked PM Modi for India's help when we brought home some Singaporeans from India recently.

"I assured him that we will care for Indian migrant workers here, just as we care for Singaporeans.

"The migrant workers made personal sacrifices to come to work here. They have made many contributions to Singapore, so we have a responsibility for them."

Prime Minister Modi said on Twitter that he had thanked his Singapore counterpart for the support and care being extended to Indian citizens in the Southeast Asian country.

Lee also said he appreciated Modi's affirmation of Singapore's efforts in looking after the migrant workers, as well as his assurance that India will not forget this.

Indian nationals made up the second-largest group of Covid-19 patients in Singapore by nationality at the time.

Bangladeshi nationals made up the largest group with more than 2,900 patients, while Singapore citizens made up the third-largest group with over 1,100 patients.

Sources: The Straits Times