FOCUS ON LOCAL CONTAINMENT MEASURES IN WORST-HIT AREAS, MHA TELLS STATES

NEW DELHI: The ministry of home affairs (MHA) on Thursday directed states and Union territories to follow intensive and local containment measures in districts with high number of Covid-19 cases.

The monthly directive, which will remain in force till May 31, however, had no mention about the imposition of a nationwide lockdown.

The Centre has already allowed states/uts to impose local lockdowns as per the situation in particular districts or the entire state.

States/uts must implement the containment measures suggested by the ministry of health and family welfare on April 25 which includes identifying districts, where either the tests positivity had been more than 10 percent or more in the last one week; or, where bed occupancy was more than 60 percent, the MHA order read.

“Districts fulfilling any of the above two criteria should be considered for taking intensive and local containment measures,” it added.

The containment framework shared by the health ministry has suggested containment as a major approach to flatten the pandemic curve.

Night curfew, restricting intermingling of people, limiting crowd in marriages to 50 persons, prohibiting social/political/ religious/sports gatherings, closing cinemas were among the measures recommended by the health ministry in its communication on April 25.

At present, Delhi is observing a full lockdown till May 3 while Uttar Pradesh is following a weekend curfew since April 24.

The Centre has also asked states to focus on ‘Test-tracktreat-vaccine’ strategy and implementation of Covid-19 appropriate behaviour across respective districts apart from door-to-door case search and adequate testing.