COVID testing needs to improve in ten states: PM Modi
What's the story
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called for an increase in COVID-19 testing in ten most affected states of the country, stating that these states account for more than 80% of active cases in India. Speaking at a virtual meeting today, he told the chief ministers of these ten states to ramp up coronavirus testing and containment facilities. Here are the details of the meeting.
Attendees
Meeting attended by likes of Yogi Adityanath, Mamata Banerjee
The meeting, which took place amidst the ongoing third phase of nationwide "unlocking," saw attendance by the chief ministers of West Bengal, Gujarat, Telangana, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Punjab. However, for Karnataka, it was the Deputy CM who attended the meeting. This was PM Modi's seventh such interaction with chief ministers on the raging health crisis.
Statement
"These states account for 80% of coronavirus cases in India"
In the meeting, PM Modi said that 80% of the nearly six lakh active cases are concentrated in these ten states. "That's why the need was felt for these states to sit together, review and discuss the issue. From this discussion, we also got to learn a lot from each other's experiences," PM Modi stated. He added India's win will depend on these states.
Fatality Rate
Aim is to bring Case Fatality Rate down: PM Modi
Stressing the need for increased and effective testing in the ten states, PM Modi expressed satisfaction at the fact that the average fatality rate in the country was lower compared to the rest of the world. He also said that the number of daily tests has reached 7 lakh and that it's increasing. The target, he said, was to bring CFR down to 1%.
Measures
Improvements in contract tracing and surveillance are the key: PM
Stressing on the triad of "containment, surveillance, and contract tracing," PM Modi said that the improvement in the country's recovery rate has increased trust and confidence among the people. He called for increased testing in Bihar, UP, Gujarat, West Bengal, and Telangana. He also touched upon the fact that COVID-19 was once a major threat (and now controlled) in Haryana, UP, and Delhi.
Quote
"Successfully lessened COVID-19 impact in UP, Haryana and Delhi"
"In some districts of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Delhi, there was a phase when COVID-19 became a huge problem. A committee was formed under the chairmanship of Union Home Minister Amit Shah and to a great extent, we achieved desired results," he added.
Funding
Tamil Nadu, Punjab CMs sought increase in funding
During the meeting, Tamil Nadu CM E Palaniswami said that the Union government should bear 50% of the costs of RT-PCR tests. Besides, Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh also sought a more liberal financial package from the Central government to fill the revenue income gap of the state. The entire country is still struggling to cope up with economic losses, induced by COVID-19.
Quote
PM's suggestions and remarks valuable: Karnataka minister
"He (PM Modi) called the video conference to give some valuable suggestions and remarks. The honorable PM had a video conference with 10 states, primarily because the active cases in the country are over 6.3 lakh," said Karnataka Medical Education Minister Dr. K Sudhkar.
Details
India's coronavirus tally crossed 22 lakh, deaths 45,000
Meanwhile, India recorded over 53,000 new cases till 9 am today, taking the country's overall tally to 22,68,676. Of all the states, Maharashtra continues to be the worst-affected, followed by Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, according to Union Health Ministry. However, on the bright side, 69.8% of COVID-19 patients have recovered and the death rate is less than 2%.