Covid-19 surge: Harsh Vardhan to meet health ministers of 11 states, UTs

Union minister Harsh Vardhan will chair a meeting with health ministers of 11 states and union territories on Tuesday to discuss the current Covid-19 situation in the country, news agency ANI reported.

The meeting comes in the backdrop of the spike in the number of daily cases reported across the country. India reported 103,558 fresh infections on Monday, the highest since the beginning of the pandemic, taking the nationwide tally to 12,589,067.

Two days ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a review meeting with officials where he discussed measures to reduce the number of cases in badly-hit states like Maharashtra, Punjab and Chhattisgarh. PM Modi also asked officials to implement the strategy of testing, tracing, treatment, and following Covid-appropriate behaviour and vaccination with seriousness in order to curb the spread of the pandemic.

At PM's review meeting, it was pointed out that severe complacency in following Covid-19 preventative measures such as using masks and social distancing coupled with pandemic fatigue and lack of proper implementation of containment measures could have led to this major spike in the number of cases. It was also highlighted that 10 states are contributing more than 90% cases and related fatalities.

India’s daily caseload dropped after September 17 last year and the gradual decline continued for five months before the current surge, which experts have described as the ‘second wave’. Maharashtra has contributed to the spike with 57,074 fresh infections along with Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab, all of which reported highest-surge in daily Covid-19 infections. The Maharashtra government on Sunday announced weekend lockdown in the entire state and ordered closure of private offices, asking employees of such firms to work from home.