PM Modi's key aide chairs meet as new Covid cases touch 10,542

NEW DELHI: Principal secretary to the Prime Minister, P K Mishra, on Wednesday chaired a meeting to assess the Covid-19 situation in the country.
Sources said the meeting, called in view of the rising number of Covid-19 cases across the country, focussed on the status of preparedness of health infrastructure and logistics, drugs, vaccination campaign in the country.
India on Wednesday recorded 10,542 new Covid-19 cases.
As many as 27 fatalities were also reported with 11 states and UTs reporting at least one death each among people who had tested positive for the disease. Maharashtra recorded maximum six fatalities, followed by Delhi (5), Chhattisgarh (4) and Jharkhand (3). The positivity rate of Covid-19 in the country stood at 4.39%. In the meeting chaired by Mishra, a comprehensive presentation was made by Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan providing an overview of the global Covid-19 situation.
He highlighted that India has been witnessing a rapid increase in the number of Covid-19 cases with majority of cases being reported in eight states (Kerala, Delhi, Maharashtra, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Rajasthan), the health secretary said, according to a statement issued by PMO.
The status of vaccination was also discussed in the meeting, followed by drug availability and infrastructure preparedness across the country.
Mishra highlighted that for managing localised surges it is essential that sufficient health infrastructure should be available at sub-district level and the same may be ensured in consultation with states. He further exhorted that the advisories for guiding states should be assessed based on evolving scenarios and updated accordingly. Mishra advised officials to maintain a strict vigil on the Covid-19 situation and take necessary actions to contain the Covid-19 spread.