Central government directs urgent action against COVID surge in some States

Health Ministry cautioned that it is especially worried with the upcoming months which is likely to witness mass gathering

The Central Government has written to Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Odisha, Maharashtra, Kerala, Delhi and Karnataka governments following a steady rise in the average daily new cases of COVID in the past few weeks, in New Delhi.

Stating that in view of some changes in symptoms and clinical manifestation of the disease it is crucial to monitor and report district wise lnfluenza-like illness (lLl) & SARI cases in all health facilities as per the guidelines, the Central Government said that, this is vital to detect early warning signals of the spread of infection.

“This will enable us to take pre-emptive action if required, in any areas of concern,’’ the Ministry said.

The Health Ministry cautioned that it is especially worried with the upcoming months which is likely to witness mass gatherings in context of various festivities to be held in different parts of the country.

``This will lead to a large number of individuals undertaking intra and interstate journeys or congregating at the same places. This may potentially facilitate transmission of infectious diseases, including COVID-19.

“lt’s critical for the state to ensure adequate testing is undertaken in all the districts of the state while maintaining the recommended share of RT-PCR and Antigen tests. The state must also closely monitor districts reporting higher cases, positivity rates and clusters to prevent further spread of infection and effective case management,’’ it added.

Centre said that the challenges which need to be addressed have been highlighted multiple times but the consistent increase that has been indicated brings to fore the need for heightened action at the State level to contain the spread of cases.