India on alert as it fears surge in Covid cases by mid-January
Operational readiness of health facilities being reviewed in states
The next 40 days will be crucial as India may see a surge of Covid-19 cases in mid of January, said Union Health Ministry sources yesterday.
The sources said the assessment had been made after analysing the previous trends of the Covid surge the country experienced.
As there have been reports of a surge in Covid cases in some countries, the operational readiness of health facilities is being reviewed in all States and Union Territories in case of another wave.
Two passengers coming from abroad tested positive for the Covid infection at Chennai airport yesterday.
“Both of them hailed from the Alangudi district of Tamil Nadu’s Pudukkottai. Their test samples have been sent to State Public Health Laboratory,” said Tamil Nadu Health Department said.
At least 39 international travellers have tested positive for Covid infection between December 24-26.
In light of the surge in Covid in some countries, hospitals across India conducted a mock drill to evaluate Covid preparedness in terms of resources, protocol and personnel.
Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya went to the Safdarjung Hospital to observe the mock drill on Tuesday. “To make sure there is not a Covid surge in the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked us to be careful. The government is also preparing if the Covid cases increase,” Mandaviya said.
In light of the surge in Covid in some countries, hospitals across India conducted a mock drill to evaluate Covid preparedness in terms of resources, protocol and personnel.
After the Centre restarted random testing of incoming passengers amid the rising scare of Covid-19 in several countries, 39 international travellers have been found Covid positive across different airports in the country.
The random testing for Covid infection at airports was started on December 24.
In the last three days, a total of 498 international travellers have been screened at different airports. Of them, 39 have tested positive and all the samples have been sent for genome sequencing, a source said yesterday.
It also includes four foreign nationals who tested positive at the Gaya airport on Tuesday. They had come to attend the Dalai Lama’s religious programme in Gaya.
As per the source, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya is also expected to visit Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport to review the situation today.
Meanwhile, India reported 188 fresh Covid cases in the last 24 hours, against 157 cases reported the previous day, according to the Union Health Ministry. The active caseload in the country presently stands at 3,468, accounting for 0.01 per cent of the country’s total positive cases.
Genome sequencing
Amid a possible Covid surge, the Centre has asked the states to ramp up genome sequencing to track the new variants. The hospitals across the country on Tuesday conducted mock drills to ensure operational readiness of the health facilities for the management of Covid-19.
In view of a possible surge, the Centre had asked the states to carry out mock drills with focus on the geographically representative availability of health facilities covering all districts, bed capacities like isolation beds, oxygen-supported isolation beds, intensive care unit beds and ventilator supported beds along with and optimal availability of human resources.