With the second wave of Covid-19 slowing down and most state governments lifting restrictions on public motion, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has suggested states and Union territories to be cautious, guarantee strict adherence to Covid-appropriate behaviour and ease curbs solely after correct evaluation of the scenario.
In one other letter, Bhalla spoke about assaults on medical doctors and healthcare staff and pointed to varied advisories the MHA has despatched prior to now.
“Easing of restrictions in some states have led to resumption of crowding of people in markets etc. without adherence to the norms of Covid-appropriate behaviour. It is, therefore essential to ensure that complacency does not set in, and there is no let-up in adhering to Covid-appropriate behaviour, while opening up activities,” Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote to all states and Union territories on Saturday.
While opening up, it might be extraordinarily vital to observe the five-fold technique of Covid-appropriate behaviour, “test-track-treat” and vaccination, Bhalla stated.
“As the situation is dynamic, a close watch needs to be kept on early signs of a surge in active cases or high positivity rates. A system should be in place at the micro-level to ensure that whenever cases rise in a smaller place, it gets checked there itself, through local containment measures as per the existing guidelines issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare,” the Union Home Secretary stated.
In one other letter, Bhalla wrote, “In the present circumstances, it has become imperative that strict action be taken against those who assault healthcare professionals. Institutional FIRs should be registered against assaulters and such cases should be fast-tracked. You may also like to invoke provisions of the Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Act, 2020, where applicable.”
