Scaling up preventive measures amid the cases of the new Omicron variant that has been found in countries like Botswana, South Africa and Hong Kong, the Uttar Pradesh government has intensified screening and strengthened surveillance at the airports as per the guidelines of the central government.
Lucknow DM Abhishek Prakash told India Today that preparations for free RT-PCR tests for international flight passengers have been made and it will be mandatory for those coming from different countries.
Upgrading its guard against the new variant B.1.1.529, which has been classified as a ‘Variant of Concern’ by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the state government has taken prompt action by putting the health teams in all the 75 districts on alert, according to an official statement.
“Uttar Pradesh has been maintaining control over the Covid situation fairly well. While there is no situation at present which warrants panic or worry, our citizens should be more mindful about maintaining all universal precautions against Covid-19 masking, physical distancing and avoiding crowds,” said a government official.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has already asked officials to make special efforts to improve surveillance with a focus on airports to ensure that normalcy prevails in the state, the statement said.
State Surveillance Officer Vikasendu Agarwal informed that a meeting had been held with DSOs, CMOs, DIOs and health experts of 75 districts of the state. Guidelines have been issued by the state government to ensure thorough screening of travellers who have returned from abroad within 14 days.
The state government has instructed to maintain a strict vigil on foreigners coming in large numbers to Agra, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Lucknow and Kanpur.
The officers are constantly in touch with the districts regarding recent developments. Along with this, a list of those who have been vaccinated with the first and second dose has been sought, the statement said.
Former Head of Department of Pulmonary Medicine of King George's Medical University (KGMU) and Chairman of Department of Pulmonary Medicine of Era’s Medical College Prof Rajendra Prasad said that the Uttar Pradesh government has enabled the state to face new challenges by emphasising on improving health infrastructure.
In a short span of time, the government has equipped the state with health facilities by setting up new oxygen plants, new medical colleges, increasing the number of beds, recruiting doctors, CHCs and PHCs in view of any future challenges, according to the statement.
Out of the 1,46,396 samples tested in the last 24 hours, nine samples tested positive for the Covid-19 infection. As a result, the Test Positivity Rate (TPR) has slumped to 0.01 per cent in Uttar Pradesh.
In the same period, another nine patients also recovered from the infection. The active cases have drastically reduced from a high of 3,10,783 in April to 83 now.
Uttar Pradesh has administered over 15.90 crore vaccine doses so far, the most in the country. On the other hand, Maharashtra has currently given 11.18 crore doses.
(With inputs from agencies)