Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday directed officials to increase storage capacity for anti-coronavirus vaccines, when they become available, as he virtually equated the security for the vaccines with that of electronic voting machines. He also launched the “Mera Covid Kendra” mobile application, which will help people find Covid-19 testing centres near them.
At a meeting at his official residence, he directed officials to increase the cold storage capacity to 2.30 lakh litres by December 15, according to an official statement. He added that cold chain facilities would be arranged at each districts and divisions.
“All security arrangements should be made to ensure its availability. The safety of the vaccine storage spots should be ensured in the same manner as that of the electronic voting machines,” the chief minister said. He also directed officials to ensure that healthcare workers are trained in large number to administer vaccines.
The app can be downloaded on a smart phone from the Google Play Store and will locate the testing centres within the periphery of 5 kilometres. It will also provide information, including details of lab technicians, contact numbers of supervisors as well as opening and closing time, on all the testing centres in the district.
Speaking on the occasion, the CM said, “We will certainly win our ongoing battle against Covid-19 by remaining cautious and vigilant. I remember when the RT-PCR test was conducted for the first day in the King George Medical University (KGMU) on March 23, then only 72 tests were done that day. Today, with our teams working under all circumstances, we have completed 2 crore tests….”
He claimed that UP’s policies had been appreciated by all – from WHO to NITI Aayog. “We not only paid attention to testing and health infrastructure, but we also succeeded in protecting the livelihood of people during the pandemic, he said.
Meanwhile, Additional Chief Secretary (Health) Amit Mohan Prasad said all Covid-19 test centres have been geo-tagged. From time to time, the field workers of the health department and district administration will keep adding new testing centres online.