Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday said the state government is working strenuously to deal with any situation that may arise due to a possible third wave of COVID-19 amid the emergence of the highly contagious Omicron variant.
Haryana has seen a surge in Covid cases during the past week, with the Gurgaon district being the worst-affected. Some other Haryana districts such as Faridabad which come under the National Capital Region have also reported a jump in infections.
The state has so far also reported 63 cases of Omicron variant of coronavirus, with 23 of them being active. At the meeting, Khattar said the deputy commissioners should also keep the local level committees and interdepartmental committees of their districts alert so that their services can be availed when required, according to an official statement.
Services of Anganwadi workers and the education department can also be sought, he said, adding public places such as bus stands, mini secretariats, malls and gyms should be kept under surveillance and entry without vaccination certificate should be strictly restricted.
The facility in Rohtak's Maharshi Dayanand University to detect the Omicron variant has begun. Now, getting test results will be expedited, Khattar said. Underlining that Covid cases are increasing in Gurgaon, Faridabad, Panchkula, Sonipat and Ambala, he said, "These districts have been kept in Group A as the risk of spread is high there. He also asked the deputy commissioners to review Covid cases daily."
About 3 lakh vaccine doses are being administered every day in Haryana, Khattar said. State Health Minister Anil Vij said preparations have been made to vaccinate the eligible 15.40 lakh children in the age group of 15 to 18 years. The vaccination programme for this age group will begin across the country on Monday.
Addressing a virtual meeting presided by Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya 'Covid Review and Vaccination', Vij said Haryana needs 10 lakh more vaccine doses. He was assured by Mandaviya that these will be made available by Monday.
Notably, the state has imposed a night curfew a week ago. On January 1, the authorities ordered the closure of cinema halls, multiplexes and sports complexes in five districts, including Gurgaon and Faridabad from January 2 to 12.
Vij said that it would be mandatory to set up oxygen plants in government and private hospitals with more than 50 beds. So far, oxygen plants have been commissioned in 84 government hospitals. Also, 54 private hospitals have set up such plants, Vij said.
With inputs from PTI.
