India has entered the third year of the fight against "one of the biggest epidemics in 100 years", Prime Minister Narendra Modi said this evening after he held a meeting with Chief Ministers to discuss the unprecedented spike in Covid infections. Vaccination is the best bet against coronavirus, PM Modi insisted, adding that about 70 per cent of the adult population in the country has got both doses.
The meeting comes on a day when the country registered over 2.47 lakh fresh infections. The alarming rise in infections across the country is driven by the new Omicron variant, which, experts have said, is highly contagious.
Any strategy to fight the spike in infections should focus on minimum disruption for the lives and livelihoods of common people, PM Modi underscored today after several states were pushed to bring back curbs.
"It is very important to safeguard the economy and livelihood of common people while framing Covid strategies. The focus must be on local containment," the Prime Minister said.
"Whatever doubts we had about Omicron are now getting cleared. The infection rate is significantly higher as compared to the variants reported earlier. While fighting against this new variant, we have to prepare for the strains in future too. We now have an experience of two years in the fight against coronavirus."
"We have to stay alert but we also need to be aware that there's no need to panic. We have to be careful amid this festive season," PM Modi said.
A "pre-emptive, pro-active and collective" approach has to be adopted, it was underlined after today's meeting.
Booster doses to all the frontline workers and those above 60 years of age should be given at the earliest, the Prime Minister said, adding that about 3 crore teens have got their first doses in 10 days. The government began two new phases of the incoculation program this month - vaccines for teens between 15 to 18 years of age, and booster doses for those on the frontline and "at-risk" population.
Amid an alarming surge in cases, the Prime Minister insisted, "A majority of patients should be treated in home isolation. They must follow the government guidelines."
Today's meeting focused on state-specific scenarios to battle Covid, including best practices and public health response. The Prime Minister urged all states to ensure adequate health infrastructure at the district level and to accelerate the vaccination drive for children in the 15-18 age group.
Ashok Gehlot (Rajasthan), Himanta Biswa Sarma (Assam), Charanjit Channi (Punjab), N Rangaswamy (Puducherry), Bhupesh Baghel (Chhattisgarh) and Biplab Deb (Tripura) Basavaraj Bommai (Karnataka) and Zoramthanga (Mizoram) were among the Chief Ministers who attended the meeting. Home Minister Amit Shah and Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya were also present.
This is the second meeting PM Modi has held amid the surge in Covid infections in a week.
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