New Delhi: The Center has recommended lockdowns in districts across the country where COVID disease is endemic. It is recommended to close the districts where the test positivity has crossed 15 per cent. According to the report, the Center has prepared a list of 150 districts accordingly.
The proposal is for a lockdown with concessions for essential services. The measures were recommended by the Union Health Ministry at a high-level meeting on Tuesday. At the same time, the final decision will be taken in consultation with the state governments.
The Union Ministry of Health said further recommendations could be made but urgent action was needed to curb the spread of the disease, which is currently prevalent in districts. The move comes after the central government on Sunday asked state governments to impose stricter control and lockdown measures in districts where more than 10 per cent of patients report more than 10 per cent positivity or oxygen ICU beds in the past week.
In the last week, more than three lakh cases have been reported daily in the country. India’s daily positive rate is currently 20%. As many as 3.23 lakh new cases were reported across the country yesterday. Maharashtra topped the list with 48,700 cases. Uttar Pradesh reported 33,551 cases and Karnataka 29,744 cases. COVID cases were at record highs even in the relatively sparsely populated states of Kerala.
In Kerala, COVID confirmed 32,819 people yesterday. The death toll of 32 has been confirmed to be due to COVID. The test positivity rate is 23.24. Outbreaks were reported in Kozhikode 5015, Ernakulam 4270, Malappuram 3251, Thrissur 3097, Kottayam 2970, Thiruvananthapuram 2892, Palakkad 2071, Kannur 1996, Alappuzha 1770, Kollam 1591, Pathanamthitta 1163, Wayanad 968, Kasaragod 906 and Idukki 859.
If the recommendation is implemented, all the other districts in Kerala except Pathanamthitta, Wayanad, Kasaragod and Idukki will go to the lockdown.
There are over one lakh active covid patients in eight states namely Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh and Tamil Nadu. These states account for 69% of the total cases in the country.
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