PM Modi appreciates efforts of Centre, Delhi govt in containing Covid situation

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday appreciated the efforts of the Centre, state and local authorities in containing the Covid-19 situation in Delhi and directed that similar approach be replicated in checking the pandemic in the entire NCR area.

Modi also directed that real-time national level monitoring and guidance should be provided to all affected states and places with high test positivity rate.

He made these remarks at a meeting to take stock of the Covid-19 situation in various parts of the country and the preparedness of various states, a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office said.

The prime minister reiterated the need to observe personal hygiene and social discipline in public places.

Modi said the awareness about the pandemic should be disseminated widely and a continuous emphasis on preventing the spread of the infection should be laid.

He said there is no room for any complacency in this regard, according to the statement.

“The prime minister appreciated the concerted efforts of the Centre, state and local authorities in containing the pandemic situation in Delhi,” the statement said.

“He further directed that a similar approach should be adopted with other state governments in containing the COVID-19 pandemic in the entire NCR area,” it said.

The review meeting was attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan and the cabinet secretary among others.

The Union home minister had stepped in last month to handle the coronavirus situation in the national capital amid rising cases and criticism in different quarters of the Delhi government’s handling of the COVID-19 situation, with complaints of non-availability of beds in hospitals for patients and difficulty in getting the tests done in laboratories.

Shah had discussed ways to check the spread of the virus in the NCR with chief ministers of Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

The NCR comprises districts belonging to Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. The prominent ones being Gautam Buddha Nagar (Noida), Ghaziabad, Gurgaon, and Faridabad.

During Saturday’s meet, the “successful example” of surveillance and home-based care through ‘Dhanvantri Rath’ in Ahmedabad was highlighted and it was directed that it may be emulated in other places, the statement said.

According to Health Ministry data updated on Saturday morning, India’s Covid-19 tally zoomed past the eight-lakh mark.

As per data updated at 8 am, the death toll climbed to 22,123 with 519 people succumbing to the disease in 24 hours.

Of the 519 new deaths reported, 226 are from Maharashtra, 64 from Tamil Nadu, 57 from Karnataka, 42 from Delhi, 27 from Uttar Pradesh and 26 from West Bengal.

Andhra Pradesh reported 15 fatalities, Gujarat 14, Telangana eight and Rajasthan six. Assam, and Jammu and Kashmir reported five deaths, followed by Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Punjab with four deaths each from, Haryana and Puducherry three fatalities each while two persons have succumbed to the infection in Chhattisgarh.