With COVID cases again on the increase in several states, the Union Health Ministry addressed a letter to five states including Delhi and Maharashtra on Friday, recommending that state authorities maintain a close eye on the situation and take immediate action if necessary. Delhi, Haryana, Kerala, Maharashtra, and Mizoram are the States concerned.
In the letter, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan directed the state authorities to continue monitoring the spread of coronavirus infection and to adhere to the five-pronged approach of Test-Track-Treat-Vaccination and Adherence to COVID appropriate behaviour. States have also been instructed to regularly monitor influenza-like illness (ILI) and SARI cases in all health institutions in order to discover early warning signs.
“A sustained and significant decline in the number of Covid-19 cases has been observed in India over the past 2 months, with the country reporting less than 1,000 daily new cases for the past few days. The weekly positivity rate has remained below 1 per cent. There are a few states which are reporting a higher contribution to India’s daily new cases,” the letter read.
Union Health Secretary Bhushan explicitly stated that Kerala had recorded 2,321 new cases in the previous week, accounting for 31.8 per cent of all new cases in India. “The state has also seen an increase in positivity in the last week from 13.45 per cent to 15. 53 per cent,” he wrote.
“Laxity at any level may nullify the gains in pandemic management so far. Regular monitoring and follow-up action in emerging areas of concern is crucial,” the letter further added.
The health secretary also cautioned the states that it is vital that they maintain a close eye on any regions of concern and, if required, take preventive steps to minimise the spread of sickness. To track the virus’s transmission and development, testing and surveillance are still required.
The letter emphasised in the context of Maharashtra that the state had registered 794 new COVID cases in the previous week, accounting for 10.9 per cent of all new cases in India. Similarly, Delhi was advised to be cautious, as the Union Territory’s positive COVID cases grew from 0.51 per cent to 1.25 per cent in the previous week.
The ministry has also recommended authorities conduct genomic sequencing on samples taken from both international travellers and local clusters of patients. The ministry has expressed the states that it will continue to provide the necessary support in order to contain the outbreak.
According to the Union Health Ministry, India recorded a single-day increase of 1,109 new coronavirus infections on Friday, bringing the overall number of COVID cases to 4,30,33,067, while active cases decreased to 11,492.
