By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: The Union government will send Central teams to states with low Covid-19 vaccination, rising cases and insufficient health infrastructure to assist them, it was decided in a high level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday to review the situation in the country.
The PM directed officials to ensure that the health systems in the states, beginning from the district level, are strengthened to meet any challenge posed by the Omicron variant whose total case count crossed 300 in India.
It is important for states to ensure that oxygen supply equipment is installed and fully functional, he instructed, also urging officials to work with states on a regular basis and review the status of preparedness of various components of the health infrastructure.
Earlier in the day, the Union health ministry proposed a five-point strategy to tackle any future Covid wave in the wake of the Omicron outbreak, including subjecting samples from any cluster to whole genome sequencing to identify the presence of the strain and quickly press in necessary measures.
In a review meeting with states, Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan reiterated the need to impose night curfews and ensure strict regulation of large gatherings, especially ahead of the forthcoming festivities. He also asked states to promptly notify containment zones and create buffer zones to isolate new clusters of Covid positive cases.
On testing and surveillance, states were asked to keep a close and strict watch on the number of Delta and Omicron cases in all districts, case positivity on a day-on-day and week-on-week basis, the doubling rate and emerging clusters.
In addition, states were directed to ensure door-to-door case search in containment areas and to test all cases of severe acute respiratory as well as influenza-like illnesses, apart from vulnerable and comorbid people. The latest guidelines say that local containment measures are to be put in place by the district administration if the test positivity rate goes beyond 10% or occupancy of oxygenated beds crosses 40%.
Night curfew in MP
23 new cases of Omicron variant in Maharashtra, its highest in a day so far
Madhya Pradesh imposes night curfew across the state from 11 pm to 5 am with immediate effect
Any restriction must be enforced for a minimum of 14 days, Centre tells states
104 Omicron patients have recovered or migrated so far, according to govt data
