Varanasi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviewed the Covid-19 situation in his parliamentary constituency Varanasi via video conferencing on Sunday and directed officials to ramp up efforts to tackle the surge in cases and provide all possible assistance to the ill at the earliest.The PM sought the latest figures of testing, beds, medicines, vaccines, manpower and treatment of Covid patients in the district. He thanked doctors and medical staff for doing their duty in this hour of crisis and urged them to use their experience of the first wave last year and move forward cautiously.

Modi asked officials to focus on the strategy of ‘testing, tracking and treating’ adopted during the first wave of pandemic. Interacting with public representatives and officials, the PM said he is also taking feedback from the people of Varanasi constantly. “The expansion and modernisation of medical infrastructure in Varanasi in the last five-six years has helped in combating Covid. Since the number of patients is increasing, the number of beds in Covid facilities, ventilators and availability of oxygen is being augmented in Varanasi,” the PM added.

The entire machinery has to work with the same strategy which had helped in controlling the first wave of Covid-19, Modi said.

The Prime Minister emphasized on increasing efforts at all levels due to increase in cases. He said that the Varanasi administration should step up the pace of work in all fields in the same way it rapidly set up the ‘Kashi Covid Response Centre’. He asked officials to ensure early results of Covid samples so that treatment can be started promptly if the report is positive so that severity and complications can be prevented. The PM also told officials to take proper care of patients in home isolation sensitively with full responsibility.

He also appealed to the people to wear masks, maintain two-yard distance and strictly follow all Covid protocols. He also asked officials to ensure that maximum people over 45 years are vaccinated in the ongoing drive. The PM appreciated the role of social and voluntary organisations in extending all support to the government in combating Covid-19 effectively and urged all public representatives and officials to ask people to be alert and cautious to avoid further spread of the pandemic.

Earlier, the officials gave all details of arrangements, exercises and measures for tackling Covid-19, including setting up a control room for contract tracing, home isolation, command and control centre, dedicated phone lines, ambulance services, telemedicine facilities and rapid response teams. They informed the PM that 1,98,383 people had been given the first dose and 35,014 have received the second dose of the vaccine against Covid-19 in the district so far.

Divisional commissioner Deepak Agrawal, police commissioner A Satish Ganesh, district magistrate Kaushal Raj Sharma, municipal commissioner Gaurang Rathi, chief medical officer Dr NP Singh and IMS-BHU director Prof B R Mittal attended the virtual meeting with the PM.

If You Like This Story, Support NYOOOZ

NYOOOZ SUPPORTER

₹ 10 - ₹ 1000

NYOOOZ FRIEND

₹ 2000 - ₹ 5000

Your support to NYOOOZ will help us to continue create and publish news for and from smaller cities, which also need equal voice as much as citizens living in bigger cities have through mainstream media organizations.