New Delhi, Nov 11 (UNI) Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Wednesday stressed the importance of 'Jan Andolan' initiated by the Prime Minister advocating Covid Appropriate Behaviour, that he said, aptly summed up the best available strategy to contain Covid-19.

While appreciating the dedicated services of Covid warriors and frontline workers without showing signs of fatigue, Dr Harsh Vardhan noted that as on date, there were only 4.09 per cent of active cases on oxygen support, 2.73 per cent of active cases in ICU and a minute 0.45 per cent of active cases on ventilator support. He however impressed upon the need to be vigilant in the coming winter and the long festive season which could threaten the gains made against coronavirus.

The Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare was interacting with Chief Ministers, State Health Ministers and Principal Secretaries/Additional Chief Secretaries of seven states though video conferencing. These States included Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura Meghalaya and Goa.

Present at today's meeting were Uttarakhand Chief Minister T S Rawat, who also oversees the state’s health ministry, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope, Mizoram Health Minister Dr R Lalthangliana, Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Pratapsingh Rane, and Ratan Lal Nath, Minister of School Education, Higher Education, Law and Parliamentary Affairs (Tripura) participated virtually, an official statement here said.

Dr Harsh Vardhan has recently held a review meeting with Andhra Pradesh, Assam, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, Punjab, Haryana and Kerala. He has also reviewed the COVID preparedness with States/ UTs of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and Delhi.

Highlighting state specific areas of concern requiring focused attention, Dr Harsh Vardhan noted that although active cases had dipped in Maharashtra, it continued to have a large Active Caseload, with a high Fatality Rate of 2.6 per cent which increased to 3.5 per cent in and around Mumbai. CFR in Uttarakhand was higher than the national average at 1.64 per cent; Active cases were on the rise in the recent days in Manipur and the higher Positivity in the state was indicative of hidden transmission, he stated.

Forty per cent of total deaths were recorded in just the past one month in Goa which, he said, was a cause of worry. With 70 per cent of cases concentrated in Aizawl, Mizoram was seeing a further rise in active cases; Tripura and Meghalaya were witnessing higher deaths in the active age groups (45-60 years) which were preventable.

To stop the chain of transmission, he stressed that "Covid Appropriate Behaviour is the most potent social vaccine" and advocated the need for higher testing in areas such as bazaars, market places, work places, and places of gatherings. Dr Harsh Vardhan also advised the states to focus on higher testing especially in districts with higher positivity; mandatory testing of symptomatic negatives by RAT; focus on high risk groups and vulnerable populations for SARI/ILI surveillance which can give indication of infection; increase the contact tracing of close contacts of positive cases; proper follow up and monitoring of those in home isolation, especially the vulnerable groups among other measures.

The Chief Ministers and State Health Ministers shared a brief snapshot of the actions taken for containment, surveillance and treatment of the Covid positive cases along with best practices of their states. The Uttarakhand Chief Minister stated that they had mounted a comprehensive multimedia IEC campaign for encouraging Covid appropriate behaviour. Challans have been given to 1.4 lakh for not observing social distancing, and 4.5 lakh on mask negligence. In the latter case, the defaulters were given four masks each to promote mask wearing behaviour.

Mr Rajesh Tope informed about the 'My Family My Responsibility' campaign in the state of Maharashtra where house to house surveys and monitoring of home isolation cases and SARI/ILI patients were undertaken. Of the 5.7 lakh surveyed, 51,000 COVID19 positive cases were identified.

Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan advised the states to focus on three areas that include the need to suppress and break the chain of transmission, keeping mortality less than 1 per cent and the need for prolonged behaviour change. To ensure adherence of Covid appropriate behaviour, he advised strong campaigns involving MPs, MLAs and local influencers.

UNI SD JW1844