Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Monday, 13 June, called for caution, expanding vaccination coverage during Covid review meet with states.
The Union health minister chaired a meeting with several states at a time when Maharashtra has recorded a high number of daily new Covid-19 cases, along with several other states.
He said that Covid is not over yet and that school children’s vaccination should also e emphasised upon. He urged states and Union Territories to increase Covid-19 vaccination coverage for schoolchildren, precaution dose for the elderly and strengthen genome sequencing.
“Covid-19 is not over yet. With rising Covid-19 cases in some states, it is important to be alert and not to forget Covid-appropriate behaviour,” Mandaviya told the states at the review meeting.
“He urged states/UTs to continue and strengthen the surveillance and focus on genome sequencing for identifying new mutants/variants in the country. He stated that the five-fold strategy of test, track, treat, vaccination and adherence to Covid Appropriate Behavior (CAB) needs to be continued and monitored by States/UTs,” the ministry said in a statement.
“Stressing the importance of vaccination among the vulnerable age groups, he urged the state health ministers to personally review the status and progress of the special month-long drive Har Ghar Dastak 2.0 campaign which has started since 1st June,” it added.
Mandaviya said, “Let us accelerate our efforts to identify all beneficiaries in the 12-17 age group for the 1st and 2nd doses, so they can attend schools with the protection of the vaccine.”
Indian has been registering a continued surge in daily new Covid cases. On Monday, the country recorded 8,084 fresh Covid-19 cases. This is the third day India’s daily new cases crossed the 8000 mark.
Seventeen districts in India, including seven from Kerala and five from Mizoram, are reporting a weekly Covid-19 positivity rate of more than 10%. In 24 districts, including seven from Kerala and four each from Maharashtra and Mizoram, the weekly positivity is between 5 to 10%, an official source said.
On 9 June, Health secretary Rajesh Bhushan has written to several states asking them to follow the five-fold strategy to arrest the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus. This strategy is test-track-treat, vaccination and Covid appropriate behaviour.
Bhushan had asked states to ensure high level of testing in areas reporting new or cluster.
In the letter, Bhushan also underlined the need for specific strategic areas of intervention for states/UTs like testing and surveillance, clinical management, vaccination, Covid appropriate behaviour and community engagement with an increased focus on evidence-based decision-making.
Experts have suggested that the current rise in Covid-19 cases is not a harbinger of a “new wave” but an “expected fluctuation” during endemic prevalence, experts have said, emphasising that lack of mask-wearing and low intake of booster shots may be reasons behind the surge.
They also said the recent surge is due to increased travel, social gathering and economic activities resulting in a greater possibility of the transmission of the virus.
For all the latest world News Click Here
