The Supreme Court today granted an interim stay on the Allahabad High Court order calling for a lockdown in the State of Uttar Pradesh on account of the COVID-19 situation. Prior to the SC order, the Yogi Adityanath government had also batted against Allahabad High Court’s proposal to put 5 cities of UP under complete lockdown.
“There is no need to impose a complete lockdown. Weekend lockdowns will continue to curb the spread of COVID-19”, the CMO had said.
The Uttar Pradesh CM had said in an official statement: “The state government is working with full commitment to control coronavirus infections and a strategy is being worked on for extensive testing, tracking and tracking of continuous supply of oxygen along with the availability of ICU beds for prevention of Covid-19.”
CMO listed steps taken to tackle Covid
Today, the CMO listed a series of steps taken by the Uttar Pradesh government to tackle the rising Covid-19 cases in the state.
Among the steps taken by the Uttar Pradesh government to tackle the coronavirus crisis, Yogi Adityanath said that in districts where there are more than 500 active cases, public activities will be restricted except for essential services from 8 pm to 7 am. This rule will be implemented with immediate effect, said CMO.
Moreover, weekend curfews will continue to be in place to check the spread of the pathogen in the state.
https://twitter.com/myogioffice/status/1384434261567021057?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwYogi Adityanath specified that special arrangements have to be made at border areas to make sure that the migrant workers returning from Delhi, Maharashtra and Rajasthan are tested before entering the state, but at the same time, he asked authorities to make sure that the migrants do not face any difficulty in returning to their native place.
https://twitter.com/myogioffice/status/1384435148364468226?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw“Necessary action should be taken in coordination with the state Home Department and Transport Department to ensure that proper arrangement for testing and treatment of these migrant workers are in place at border areas, stated the CM.
The UP CM furthered that the state should ensure all necessary security arrangements for the police force and other personnel working for the ongoing panchayat elections. He ordered that the candidates in the ongoing panchayat elections will be allowed to campaign only in groups of five.
Double the number of Covid beds
Uttar Pradesh government recognised the need to double the number of Covid beds in all districts of the state including Lucknow, Kanpur Nagar, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Jhansi, Gorakhpur, and Meerut districts. The government has informed that 200 beds equipped with oxygen facilities would be increased in each of these districts with immediate effect.
CM Yogi Adityanath has ordered the deployment of an officer of Secretary level in each district who would overlook the expansion of hospital beds in these districts. He said that in this regard, the medical education minister and health minister should ensure prompt action by communicating with the district administration in all the districts of the state.
https://twitter.com/myogioffice/status/1384435580373663745?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwYogi Adityanath furthered that authorities have been ordered to increase the number of dedicated Covid Hospitals in Lucknow, and prepare King George’s Medical University (KGMU) and Balrampur Hospital as designated Covid Hospitals. Besides, Era Medical College, TS Mishra Medical College, Integral Medical College, Hind Institute of Medical Sciences and Mayo Institute of Medical Sciences will also be expanded as dedicated Covid Hospitals.
https://twitter.com/myogioffice/status/1384435940215595015?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwHe added that a new consignment of 20,000-30,000 Remdesivir vials reached the state on Monday. The chief minister said three new oxygen plants will also be set up at different places in the state each week.
“With DRDO’s help, a new oxygen plant with a capacity of 220 cylinders will be installed and made operational in the next 2-3 days. The government of India has allocated 750 MT oxygen,” Yogi said.
He added that before any medical college is recognized in the state, it should be ensured that the respective college has its own oxygen plant. The CM has also ordered that all vehicles carrying oxygen will have to be GPS-tracked, oxygen plants will be provided police protection and steps will be taken to prevent black marketing. He also ordered that oxygen plants should take up supply to the nearest hospital and all hospitals with L1, L2, and L3 facilities will be tracked separately for oxygen demand and supply, ensuring a backup of at least 36 hours.
50 per cent of 108 ambulances will be dedicated for Covid-19 patients and rapid testing will begin at airports, bus and railway stations of inter-state passengers, he added.
Data showed on Monday Uttar Pradesh recorded 28,287 Covid-19 cases, which have pushed the tally of infection in the state to 879,831. The state currently has 208,523 active cases. The deaths rose by 167, the highest daily rise so far, to reach 9997. A health bulletin said the number of recoveries has increased with over 10,978 patients discharged in a day and that 661,311 people have recuperated so far from the disease in the state.