Vigilance, containment and caution are necessary, the Center said. (Archive)
New Delhi:
The Center said today that COVID-19 restrictions on various activities will remain in place, noting that while there has been a continued decline in active cases in India, there is a need for surveillance, containment and precaution due to a global increase and the emergence of a new variant of the virus in the UK.
In a statement, the Ministry of the Interior (MHA) said that it has issued new surveillance guidelines regarding COVID-19 that will remain in effect until January 31, as it asked the states and territories of the union to maintain a strict vigil to prevent any increase in cases during the New Years celebrations and the winter season.
He also asked the states and UT to actively support the central authorities in the preparations for an expected vaccination campaign.
“While there has been a continued decline in active and new COVID-19 cases, there is a need to maintain vigilance, containment and caution, considering the increase in cases globally and the emergence of a new variant. virus in the UK. “
“Consequently, containment zones continue to be carefully demarcated; prescribed containment measures are strictly followed within these zones; appropriate COVID behavior is promoted and strictly enforced, and prescribed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are prescribed with respect to various permitted activities are scrupulously followed, “the MHA said.
The ministry said an approach focused on surveillance and containment and strict adherence to the guidelines and standard operating procedures issued by it and the ministry of health, as envisaged in the guidelines issued last month, should be applied by the states and territories of the union.
Last month, the MHA had said that states and UT may impose local restrictions such as a night curfew to control the spread of COVID-19, but made it clear that they will have to consult with the Center before imposing an out-of-zone closure. containment.
“It is also necessary to maintain strict vigilance to avoid a further increase in cases as a result of the upcoming New Year celebrations and the ongoing winter season that are favorable for the spread of the virus. In this regard, the state and governments of UT, “he said today.
The guidelines issued last month had said that all activities were permitted outside of containment zones except the following, which were permitted with certain restrictions: international passenger air travel as permitted by the MHA, movie theaters and theaters with up to 50 percent capacity, swimming pools, only for training athletes, showrooms, only for business-to-business (B2B) purposes.
Social, religious, sports, entertainment, educational, cultural, religious gatherings were allowed with a maximum of 50 percent of the capacity of the room and with a ceiling of 200 people in closed spaces, maintaining the size of the land and the space in view , in open spaces. spaces.
However, based on his assessment of the situation, state governments can lower the maximum limit to 100 people or less indoors, he had said.
There will be no restrictions on the interstate and intrastate movement of people and goods, including cross-border cross-border trade under treaties with neighboring countries. No separate electronic permission, approval or permission will be required for such moves.
Noting that the Center has begun preparations for the administration and deployment of the COVID-19 vaccine, the MHA said Monday that the National Group of Experts on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 (NEGVAC) recommended prioritizing this vaccine during the initial phases. health workers, frontline workers, people aged 50 years and over and under 50 with comorbidities.
“The States / UT can instruct the interested authorities by their active support to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) in the identification, preparation of the database, delivery of vaccines, storage, security, shipment and vaccination of beneficiaries “, said.
In accordance with existing guidelines, the local district, police, and municipal authorities will be responsible for ensuring that prescribed containment measures are strictly followed.
The states and UT will ensure a careful demarcation of the containment zones by the district authorities at the micro level, taking into consideration the guidelines prescribed by the Ministry of Health in this regard.
Within the demarcated containment zones, the containment measures prescribed by the Ministry of Health will be scrupulously followed.
Only essential activities will be allowed, there will be strict perimeter control to ensure that there is no movement of people in or out of these areas, except in cases of medical emergencies and maintenance of the supply of essential goods and services, and there will be intense activity at home. House. surveillance by surveillance teams trained for this purpose.
In addition, the tests will be carried out according to the prescribed protocol, the list of contacts will be carried out with respect to all the people found COVID positive, together with their tracing, identification, quarantine and follow-up of contacts for 14 days.
Surveillance of cases of influenza-like infections (ILI), severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) will be carried out in health facilities or mobile extension units or through fever clinics in the buffer zones.
The guidelines say that the state and UT governments will take all necessary steps to promote appropriate COVID-19 behavior and ensure strict enforcement of the use of face masks, hand hygiene and social distancing.
To enforce the basic requirement to wear face masks, states and UTs may consider administrative actions, including imposing appropriate fines, on violators in public places and at work.
India’s COVID-19 case burden increased to 1,02,07,871 with 20,021 infections reported in one day, while recoveries increased to 97.82 lakh, according to data from the Union Ministry of Health updated today.
The death count increased to 1.47,901 with 279 new deaths, updated data showed at 8 a.m.
The number of people who have recovered from the disease increased to 97.82,669, bringing the national recovery rate to 95.83 percent, while the COVID-19 fatality rate stands at 1.45 percent. hundred.
The number of active COVID-19 cases remained below three lakhs for the seventh consecutive day.
There are 2,77,301 active coronavirus infections in the country, comprising 2.72 percent of the total number of cases, according to the data.
The country’s COVID-19 count had crossed the 20 lakh mark on August 7, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5, and 50 lakh on September 16. It went from 60 lakh on September 28, to 70 lakh on October 11. 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and crossed the one crore mark on December 19.
The 1,47,901 deaths reported so far in the country include 49,255 from Maharashtra, followed by 12,069 from Tamil Nadu, 12,062 from Karnataka, 10,453 from Delhi, 9,598 from West Bengal, 8,306 from Uttar Pradesh, 7,094 from Andhra Pradesh and 5,299 from Punjab.
The Health Ministry said that more than 70 percent of the deaths occurred from comorbidities.
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