Can Dettol spray kill novel Coronavirus? Here's what the company says

China’s coronavirus outbreak showed no signs of abating as the death toll rose sharply to 490 with more than 24324 confirmed cases. India has reported three cases of coronavirus so far, all from Kerala. Wuhan, Hubei's capital, is the epicentre of the outbreak.

As the deadly coronavirus fears haunts people across the world, rumours are spreading on social media platforms that Dettol spray kills novel coronavirus. A picture of Dettol disinfectant spray has been making round on social media, saying it can kill nCoV 2019.

Following the rumour-mongering and speculation spreading faster than Novel Coronavirus, Dettol manufacturer RB cleared the air about its disinfectant spray.

The label on the back of Dettol spray bottle specified it can kill "cold viruses" (human coronavirus and RSV).

Reacting on a picture of Dettol disinfectant spray posted by a Facebook user the manufacturer it can't kill nCoV 2019.

"RB has become aware of speculation about Dettol products and the novel 2019-nCoV coronavirus.

"As this is an emerging outbreak, RB, like all manufacturers, doesn't yet have access to the new virus (2019-nCoV) for testing and, as a result, are not yet in a position to confirm levels of effectiveness against the new strain," said the company.

The company said it will "continue to play our part in combating and containing the outbreak of the virus".

As of Monday, the toll due to the fast-spreading deadly coronavirus increased to 361, with 17,205 infected cases in China alone.