PM Modi Chairs COVID-19 Review Meet: State Disaster Fund Limit Increased To 50%; Focus On Testing, Tracing & Treatment | HIGHLIGHTS

During the meeting via video conference, PM Modi took a stalk of the coronavirus situation in the states and stressed on getting the use of face masks in habit. He also asked the Chief Ministers to focus on the micro-containment zones.

Image (ANI)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday chaired a high-level meeting with the Chief Ministers of seven states with the highest number of coronavirus cases in the country. These states are Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Punjab. During the meeting via video conference, PM Modi took a stalk of the coronavirus situation in the states and stressed on getting the use of face masks in habit. He also asked the Chief Ministers to focus on the micro-containment zones. "It is difficult to make wearing masks a habit, but we will not be able to get the desired results if we don't make it a part of our daily life," PM Modi said. Further in the discussion, PM said that there are more than 700 districts in the country but only 60 districts in seven states are a cause of worry. He suggested increasing the focus on effective testing, tracing, treatment, surveillance and clear messaging. One of the key decisions taken in the virtual meeting was the use of State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) for Corona Specific Infrastructure. It has now been decided to increase the limit of use of SDRF from 35 percent to 50 percent. With this decision, more money will be available for the states to compete against Corona. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh during the discussion urged PM Modi to direct urgent steps to ensure adequate supplies from other states and also sought expeditious release of Rs 200 crore that state govt had requested as next tranche of central aid for Covid management. "Though state govt is launching an aggressive media campaign to educate farmers and people in general, giving the linkage with Covid, it was imperative for Govt of India to step in with Rs 100/quintal compensation state has been seeking for farmers to manage paddy straw," Punjab CM Office reportedly said. PM Modi had met the Chief Ministers of several states last month and said India will win against the pandemic if 10 worst-affected states defeat the virus. Meanwhile, India's total tally has breached the 56-lakh mark on Wednesday with 83,347 new cases and 1,085 deaths in last 24 hours. The total case tally stands at 5,646,011 including 9,68,377 active cases. The number of people have been cured, discharged or have migrated is 45,87,614, while total number of fatalities has risen to 90,020, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Even as the country’s recovery rate of Covid-19 stands at 80.86 per cent, India remains the second-most-affected country by active and total cases, and third by fatality.