Amid reports of increase in the number of Covid-19 cases from some states, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya reiterated that the pandemic is not over yet, and Covid-appropriate behaviours such as searing masks and maintaining physical distance should be continued.
During a video conference on Monday with health ministers and senior officials of states and Union territories to review the progress of vaccination exercise ‘Har Ghar Dastak 2.0’ campaign, he referred to the increased case positivity in some states and reduced testing.
He emphasised the importance of timely testing for early identification of cases to curb the spread of the disease. The Union minister urged the authorities to continue and strengthen surveillance and focus on genome sequencing for identifying new mutants/variants in the country.
States were also urged to focus on implementing the operational guidelines for revised surveillance strategy for Covid-19 which focuses on surveillance of incoming international travellers and surveillance through health facilities, labs, and community.
Stressing on the importance of vaccination among the vulnerable age groups, he asked the officials concerned to personally review the status and progress of the special month-long ‘Har Ghar Dastak 2.0’ campaign. “Let us accelerate our efforts to identify all beneficiaries in the 12-17 age group for the first and second doses, so they can attend schools with the protection of the vaccine.”
“Our healthcare workers are going door-to-door to ensure that the vulnerable population is administered the precaution dose,” he said, and said enough doses of vaccines are available in the country.
