Take special measures for COVID-19 containment zones: Maha guv

Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh

Koshyarion Wednesday asked the state administration to consider incentivising COVID-19 frontline workers and prepare specialmeasures for containment zones.

Koshyari asked the government to prepare itself for challenges considering the likely coronavirus situation emerging in the state in the months of June and July, a Raj Bhavan statement said here tonight.

Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said the Centre feels the spike in coronavirus cases will be higher by May-end and in June, and added that the virus spread has been controlled to a large extent in Maharashtra.

The government should keep enough medical facilities, doctors, medical staff and beds ready considering the likely case load in June and July, the Raj Bhavan statement quoted Koshyari him saying at a meeting.

 

Presiding over a high-level review meeting with senior government officials at Raj Bhavan, the Governor asked the government to take special measures for COVID-19 containment zones like Dharavi, which has so far recorded 1,378 cases.

He asked the government to keep a dashboard providing handy information about availability of beds, doctors, nurses and para-medical staff for the entire state so that the same could be deployed wherever required, the statement said.

The government should think of incentivising frontline workers like sanitation workers, police, health workers, ward boys, among others, who are doing good work in the battle against COVID-19, Koshyari said.

The Governor asked the administration to make sure that non-COVID-19 patients do not suffer anywhere in the state for want of medical facilities.

At the meeting, a presentation on the COVID-19 situation in Mumbai was made by municipal commissioner I S Chahal, the statement said.

Additional chief secretary (Health) Dr Pradip Vyas apprised the Governor about the governments preparedness to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic in the state.

The Governor also took a review of transportation of migrant workers to their home states and the status of relief camp set up for them.

Thackeray was scheduled to attend the review meeting, but instead Chief Secretary Ajoy Mehta and other senior officials participated in the meet on his behalf, a CMO statement said.

Maharashtra has so far recorded 39,297 coronavirus cases and 1,390 fatalities, the highest for any state in the country. Mumbai alone accounts for 24,118 of the total infections and 841 deaths.