Govt plans nationwide drill to assess preparedness

New Delhi: Amid rising cases of Covid-19 and seasonal influenza, the government is planning a nationwide mock drill on April 10 and 11 to take stock of hospital preparedness.

According to a joint advisory issued by the Union Health Ministry and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Saturday, both public and private health facilities in all districts are expected to participate in the exercise aimed at taking stock of availability of medicines, hospital beds, medical equipment and medical oxygen.

The exact details of the mock drill shall be communicated to the states in the virtual meeting scheduled on March 27, the advisory stated. The joint advisory highlighted that in the past several weeks, Covid-19 testing has declined in some states and the current testing levels are insufficient as compared to the standards prescribed by the World Health Organization (WHO), i.e 140 tests per million.

Testing at the levels of districts and blocks also varies, with some states heavily relying on the less sensitive rapid antigen tests. "Hence it is critical to maintain optimum testing for Covid-19, equitably distributed (with suitable modifications to address emergence of new cluster of Covid cases) across the states. This is especially important to identify any emerging hotspots and take pre-emptive steps to curb virus transmission," it stated.

The joint advisory is in continuation of the Union Health Ministry's earlier communications dated March 10 and 16 on the issue of seasonal circulation of pan-respiratory pathogens in the country as well as public health response to Covid-19 in states and Union territories. The advisory signed by Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan and Director General of ICMR Dr Rajiv Bahl stated that a gradual but sustained increase in trajectory of Covid-19 cases in the country is being witnessed since mid-February.

As on date, most of the active Covid-19 cases in the country are largely being reported by a few states like Kerala (26.4 per cent), Maharashtra (21.7 per cent), Gujarat (13.9 per cent), Karnataka (8.6 per cent) and Tamil Nadu (6.3 per cent).