India’s coronavirus count on Monday crossed the 91 lakh mark (file)
New Delhi:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair a virtual meeting with top ministers from the eight states most affected by Covid on Tuesday to review the coronavirus situation, sources say. The prime minister is expected to discuss with states the cause of the increase in daily Covid numbers and planned countermeasures to halt the growth of the virus, the sources added.
PM Modi’s Covid review meeting with states, scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m., will be held in two parts, the sources said. In the first leg, he will interact with the main ministers and deputy governors of the states and territories of the Union (UT) most affected; in the second, he will carry out a general review with the main ministers and LG’s from all the states and UT, where he is expected to discuss the delivery of vaccines, sources say.
The main focus of the review meeting is likely to be developing a mechanism for efficient vaccine delivery and identifying priority beneficiaries, the sources said.
India’s coronavirus count on Monday crossed the 91 lakh mark, with 44,059 new COVID-19 infections reported in one day.
Delhi, Kerala and Maharashtra continued to report the highest number of daily COVID-19 cases in India. The national capital recorded 6,746 new infections in one day, followed by Maharashtra and Kerala with around 5,200 to 5,700 cases respectively. West Bengal recorded nearly 3,600 cases, followed by Rajasthan, which recorded its highest number so far in the past 24 hours at 3,260.
However, the biggest concern for the Center is that many smaller states, including Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Manipur, have shown a sudden increase in daily Covid numbers.
Last month, the Prime Minister called for “rapid access” of the vaccine to all members of the population and ordered officials to take into account the “geographic extent and diversity of the country” when planning logistics.
Two foreign vaccines have shown greater than 90% efficacy against coronavirus in their multi-stage trials. However, there have been concerns about the lack of infrastructure required to store and distribute them in India.
Both vaccines require freezing temperatures for storage.
On Monday, AstraZeneca, a British company that has partnered with the Serum Institute of India, said its COVID-19 vaccine could be around 90% effective. Combined analysis of both dosage regimens resulted in an average efficacy of 70%, the company said.
Adar Poonawalla, executive director of the Serum Institute, told NDTV that about 40 million doses have already been produced and that the Center would purchase 90 percent of these doses for Rs 250 or less.
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