With all signs pointing to a second Covid-19 wave, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday came down on States for not doing enough to contain the pandemic and urged them re-double their efforts so that India does not suffer the way many other countries have.

“If we do not stop this growing pandemic now, then a countrywide outbreak can occur,” Modi said while addressing Chief Ministers and administrators of Union Territories through video conferencing. India on Tuesday reported 28,900 Covid-19 cases, almost 4,500 more than the previous day. The number of active cases countrywide is more than 2.34 lakh.

Sudden spike

Modi also flagged the issue of vaccine wastage and the sudden spike in Covid-19 cases in 70 districts across 16 States where the number of cases has jumped by over 150 per cent in a fortnight. His worry was especially because cases are rising in many tier-2/3 cities that are near villages, where healthcare facilities are limited, and the situation could get out of control. He also suggested creating more micro containment zones in areas seeing a spike in cases.

Putting the concerns expressed by the Prime Minister in context, Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan later said that in addition to these 70 districts, in around 55 districts in 17 States the number of cases has gone up 100-150 per cent since March 1. Bhushan also highlighted the issue of vaccine wastage, which was the highest in Telangana at 17.6 per cent. At 11.6 per cent and 9.4 per cent, respectively, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, too, have reported wastage above the national average of 6.5 per cent.

‘Strive for zero wastage’

While addressing the Chief Ministers, Modi said that ideally the States should strive to have zero wastage of vaccines as it is the key weapon in the fight against the novel coronavirus. He also urged the States to test, track, treat and vaccinate more. He wanted the testing not just stepped up but at least 70 per cent of it done the gold standard RT-PCR way. According to the Health Ministry, at least in 12 States RT-PCR tests account for less than 70 per cent of the total.

Bhushan said in Maharshtra the positivity rate has gone up to 16.4 per cent from 10.9 per cent on March 1, while in Punjab it has increased to 6.8 per cent from 3.4 per cent. The positivity rate has more than doubled in a fortnight in many other States, too.

Another vaccine maker

Participating in the virtual meeting, Maharahstra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray urged the Prime Minister to allow Mumbai-based Haffkine Bio-Pharmaceutical Corporation Ltd to produce Covid-19 vaccine, a suggestion Modi accepted readily, the State officials said.

Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said the State was ramping up the vaccination drive from 1.5 lakh people a day to about 3 lakh. So far, a total of 22.15 lakh have received the first dose of the Covisheild vaccine, and 5.42 lakh the second shot, Rupani said.

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said the State is gearing up to handle the sudden surge in cases, by setting up three Covid Care Centres in Bengaluru.

Till 7 pm on Wednesday over 14 lakh Covid shots were administered across the country, taking the total number of inoculations till date to 3.64 crore.

(With inputs from Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Mumbai)

 

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