Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan has written a letter to Chief Secretaries of all states and union teritories with reference to the letter of The Union Ministry Of Health And Family Welfare dated 25th November regarding the mutation of SARS-CoV-2 variant (B.1.1.529; named Omicron), reported from South Africa on 24th November 2021. WHO has designated this variant as a new Variant of Concern (VOC). As a proactive step, Government has already placed countries where this VOC has been found in the category of ‘At-Risk’ countries for additional follow up measures of international travellers coming into India from these countries.
In view of the possible threat that this VoC can pose to the nation, it is imperative that the intensive containment, active surveillance, increased coverage of vaccination and Covid Appropriate Behaviour must be enforced in the field in a very proactive manner to effectively manage this It is essential that the disease surveillance network in the country is geared up for rigorous follow up of all international travellers from all countries especially countries designated as “At Risk”. There is already a reporting mechanism for obtaining past travel details of passengers coming through international flights this should be reviewed at your level and the protocol provided by this Ministry should be strictly ensured including testing on disembarkation of international travelers coming from “At Risk” Countries and sending all positive samples for genome sequencing to INSACOG Labs in a prompt manner.
Ample testing infrastructure need to be operationalized to tackle any surge due to this mutated virus. It has been observed that the overall testing as well as the proportion of RT-PCR tests have declined in some States. States must strengthen the testing infrastructure and strictly implement the testing guideline Continued monitoring of “Hotspots” (areas where recent cluster of positive cases have emerged). States should keep a close check on the emerging trend of cases and the positivity in an area and quickly delineate hotspots for effective containment of Covid 19 Having adequate availability of health facilities across the state is essential to ensure that there are no delays in providing care. Trained human resources, infrastructure, logistics and procurement should be planned & strengthened considering the geographical spread of the pandemic and there shall be no compromise in providing prompt quality treatment to the patients.
We have seen in the last surges in the country that discourse on COVID is often influenced by misinformation leading to anxiety in the masses. To address this, all States should proactively & regularly address the concerns of community through press briefings & State bulletins providing evidence based information. States may also ensure that community is well informed regarding the measures undertaken and advised to follow measures like Covid Appropriate Behaviour & getting vaccinated.
It is critical for the State/UTs to adhere to the overarching Test-Track-Treat Vaccinate and Covid Appropriate Behaviour’ principle to ensure stringent implementation of containment measures as per MOHFW guidelines.
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