OPD, schools in Punjab to open from Monday

Chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh decides against opening of multiplexes, cinema halls and entertainment parks

Chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Thursday ordered resumption of normal OPD services and elective surgeries, with extensive precautions in place, but warned against any complacency given the projections of a possible second wave of Covid-19.

The CM also asked the departments to ensure that the medical staff is kept motivated and all vacancies are filled up immediately. (HT FILE)

The chief minister (CM) also allowed reopening of government schools from Monday after due sanitisation and disinfection procedures, and with clear SOPs mandating parents’ consent as well as ceiling on the number of students and hours of operation. He conveyed these decisions during a virtual meeting to review the Covid situation.

However, the state government has decided not to open multiplexes, cinema halls and entertainment parks in the state. “@capt_amarinder led Punjab government decides not to open Multiplexes, Cinema Halls and Entertainment Parks in the state yet. However, Ramlilas to be allowed with strict Covid protocols,” CM’s media adviser Raveen Thukral tweeted.

The state authorities had earlier permitted cinema halls and multiplexes to reopen from Thursday.

Expressing concern over the warnings by health and medical experts of the grave possibility of a second wave hitting the state during the winter months, Amarinder directed his officers to take all steps to ensure that things remain under control during the festive times ahead. The CM also asked the departments to ensure that the medical staff is kept motivated and all vacancies are filled up immediately.

DGP Dinkar Gupta said in the meeting that Punjab Police were gearing up to manage the festival season and all efforts would be made to ensure strict adherence to Covid norms at places such as markets and ramlilas. He said the police were also currently focused on handling the increasing number of farmer protests, as well as picketing by the BJP and the RSS.

Warning of 2nd wave during festival season

Dr KK Talwar, head of Punjab government’s expert advisory committee on health, termed the decline in positivity rate to 2.60 a good sign, but warned of a second wave hitting the state during the festival season. “With just about 500-odd cases daily at present, the projections for the next few days are positive. However, the spate of upcoming festivals and the fatigue in the health system could see the next wave hitting soon,” he added.

Dr Rajesh Kumar, a member of the Covid expert group, said even if the situation remained under control throughout November, the onset of the winter season could trigger a spurt in infections.

Dr Talwar said teams of experts were being formed to conduct a mortality audit of every hospital to identify gaps, since the fatality rate in the state continued to be high (at 3.1%). This is despite the fact that the recovery rate has gone up from 82% on October 1 to 90.3% as of October 13.

Oxygen generation plants to come up at 13 hospitals

Health secretary Hussan Lal said to ensure adequate availability of oxygen supply in the coming weeks and months, tendering for 1st phase for augmenting the supply was in process. The Government of India had fixed the rates of medical oxygen, including that of transportation of cylinders, though liquid oxygen transportation rates were yet to be fixed, he added.

In the first phase, oxygen generation plants will be set up at district hospitals in Jalandhar, Ludhiana and at medical colleges at Patiala, Amritsar, and Faridkot, which will be followed by district hospitals in Mansa, Sangrur, Bathinda and MKH, Patiala in the second phase and district hospitals of Rupnagar, Ferozepur, Gurdaspur and Amritsar in the third phase.

Aggressively counter false Covid propaganda: CM to sarpanches

Chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh has written to all sarpanches in the state, urging them to aggressively counter the false propaganda being spread about Covid by certain malicious people.

Amarinder, in his communication, has asked the sarpanches to work among the people to ensure that they are not misled by the misinformation and blatant lies, and strengthen the government’s hands in fighting the pandemic, especially in the upcoming festival season.

He said though various measures taken by his government had led to improvement in the Covid situation, the state could not afford to be complacent. “We cannot afford to let our guard down, especially considering the fact that the paddy harvesting is on, and also the government procurement,” he said.

Reminding the sarpanches of their moral duty, the CM asked them to maintain strict vigil on the health situation and encourage anyone showing Covid symptoms to undergo testing.

He further asked them to ensure that the patients infected with Covid, as well as their contacts, are identified and kept in isolation, for which elaborate arrangements should be made.