The Centre has advised ramping up vaccination, testing for Covid.
Vaccination for Coronavirus should be ramped up in states where elections will be held early next year, the government said today after a review meeting. There should be strict Enforcement of Covid-appropriate behaviour and testing should be "exponentially accelerated" to curb any sudden surge of the virus, the government said amid a court's demand that the election be pushed back in view of the threat from the highly contagious Covid strain Omicron.
Sources have indicated that the Election Commission is likely to stick to schedule and follow hold the polls before the terms of the state assemblies end.
At the meeting today, the Center reviewed the public health response measures and vaccination status in the states – Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur.
While Uttarakhand and Goa had higher than the national average for vaccination for the first and second doses, the numbers in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Manipur were well below, the government said in a statement.
The Centre has advised ramping up vaccination "through district-wise weekly plan with daily review".
In the statement, the government also said that the state authorities have been "strongly advised" to ensure that recommended Covid-appropriate behavior is strictly followed and "adequate measures are undertaken for their effective enforcement".
Earlier this year, the Election Commission had come under much criticism as the second wave of Covid swept through the country on the heels of a string of state elections. Experts pointed to regular physical campaigning by political parties, unhampered by any restrictions from the Commission or Covid-safety measures.
In view of the last year's situation and the current threat from the Omicron, the Allahabad High Court had requested the Election Commission on Friday to postpone the elections.
The court had also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ban physical election rallies and public meetings. "If the rallies are not stopped, results will be worse than the second wave," Justice Shekhar Yadav had said.