By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: As Covid-19 cases touched 6,050, the highest in 202 days, Union Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya on Friday held a review meeting with state health ministers and directed them to identify emergency hotspots, ramp up testing and ensure hospital infrastructure readiness.
He also asked state health ministers to review preparedness for Covid-19 management with district administrations and public health officials on April 8 and 9 and to visit the health facilities and review the mock drills to be conducted on April 10 and 11.
After the meeting, the minister tweeted, “Chaired a meeting to review COVID-19 situation with the Health Ministers of the States & Union Territories. Stressed on increasing covid testing & genome sequencing along with following COVID-appropriate behaviour. We have to be alert & avoid spreading any unnecessary fear.”
ALSO READ | 400% rise in Covid-19 cases in India in two weeks, but testing yet to pick up
“Requested all the health ministers to review health facilities and infrastructure in their respective states & also visit the hospital on April 10 & 11 when a COVID mock drill will be conducted across the country,” he tweeted.
On Friday, 13 deaths were reported in the country. India has been witnessing a steady increase in Covid-19 cases, with average daily cases rising to 4,188 in the week ending April 7 from 571 in the week ending April 17, and weekly positivity up to 3.02% in the week ending April 7.
88,503 average daily cases have been reported globally simultaneously, with the top five countries contributing 62.6% of global issues in the last week.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) is closely tracking one variant of interest, XBB.1.5 and six other variants are also being monitored -BQ.1, BA.2.75, CH.1.1, XBB, XBF and XBB.1.16.
The minister said that while Omicron and its sub-lineages remain the predominant variant, most assigned variants have little or no significant transmissibility, disease severity or immune escape.
ALSO READ | India’s rising Covid cases: Experts say common cold-like spread suggests endemicity, urge precaution
The prevalence of XBB.1.16 increased from 21.6% in February to 35.8% in March. However, no evidence of an increase in hospitalisation or mortality has been reported, he said.
Present at the meeting were Chief Minister of Puducherry N Rangaswamy, who also holds the health portfolio, Kerala Health Minister Veena George, Tamil Nadu Health Minister Thiru Ma Subramanian, Andhra Pradesh Health Minister Vidadala Rajini, Telangana Health Minister Thanneeru Harish Rao, Odisha Health Minister Niranjan Pujari, Maharashtra Health Minister Tanaji Sawant, Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj among others.
Officials said 25 health ministers were present at the meeting called to review the public health preparedness for containment and management of Covid-19 and the progress of the national Covid-19 vaccination campaign, given the recent upsurge in cases in some states.
Though, health ministers of West Bengal and Bihar did not attend the meet, their officials participated in the virtual meet.
NEW DELHI: As Covid-19 cases touched 6,050, the highest in 202 days, Union Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya on Friday held a review meeting with state health ministers and directed them to identify emergency hotspots, ramp up testing and ensure hospital infrastructure readiness.
He also asked state health ministers to review preparedness for Covid-19 management with district administrations and public health officials on April 8 and 9 and to visit the health facilities and review the mock drills to be conducted on April 10 and 11.
After the meeting, the minister tweeted, “Chaired a meeting to review COVID-19 situation with the Health Ministers of the States & Union Territories. Stressed on increasing covid testing & genome sequencing along with following COVID-appropriate behaviour. We have to be alert & avoid spreading any unnecessary fear.”googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });
ALSO READ | 400% rise in Covid-19 cases in India in two weeks, but testing yet to pick up
“Requested all the health ministers to review health facilities and infrastructure in their respective states & also visit the hospital on April 10 & 11 when a COVID mock drill will be conducted across the country,” he tweeted.
On Friday, 13 deaths were reported in the country. India has been witnessing a steady increase in Covid-19 cases, with average daily cases rising to 4,188 in the week ending April 7 from 571 in the week ending April 17, and weekly positivity up to 3.02% in the week ending April 7.
88,503 average daily cases have been reported globally simultaneously, with the top five countries contributing 62.6% of global issues in the last week.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) is closely tracking one variant of interest, XBB.1.5 and six other variants are also being monitored -BQ.1, BA.2.75, CH.1.1, XBB, XBF and XBB.1.16.
The minister said that while Omicron and its sub-lineages remain the predominant variant, most assigned variants have little or no significant transmissibility, disease severity or immune escape.
ALSO READ | India’s rising Covid cases: Experts say common cold-like spread suggests endemicity, urge precaution
The prevalence of XBB.1.16 increased from 21.6% in February to 35.8% in March. However, no evidence of an increase in hospitalisation or mortality has been reported, he said.
Present at the meeting were Chief Minister of Puducherry N Rangaswamy, who also holds the health portfolio, Kerala Health Minister Veena George, Tamil Nadu Health Minister Thiru Ma Subramanian, Andhra Pradesh Health Minister Vidadala Rajini, Telangana Health Minister Thanneeru Harish Rao, Odisha Health Minister Niranjan Pujari, Maharashtra Health Minister Tanaji Sawant, Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj among others.
Officials said 25 health ministers were present at the meeting called to review the public health preparedness for containment and management of Covid-19 and the progress of the national Covid-19 vaccination campaign, given the recent upsurge in cases in some states.
Though, health ministers of West Bengal and Bihar did not attend the meet, their officials participated in the virtual meet.
