Amid threat of new Covid variants, Mansukh Mandaviya to hold meeting with state health ministers today

Covid scare in India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday cautioned against complacency, called for a strict vigil, and directed the ongoing surveillance measures.

NEW DELHI: Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya will hold a meeting with health ministers of states and Union territories on Friday over rising COVID-19 cases in some parts of the world. Mandaviya made a suo motu statement in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday on India's preparedness. "We are constantly monitoring the situation. There are no direct flights between China and India but people come via other routes," he said.

He said the focus is to ensure that no unknown variant of the virus enters India and at the same time there is no impediment to travelling.

As China and some other countries witness a surge in Covid cases, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday cautioned against complacency, called for strict vigil and directed that the ongoing surveillance measures, especially at international airports, be strengthened.

"Covid is not over yet," Modi reiterated at a high-level Covid review meeting and urged people to wear masks in crowded places.

The Union Health Ministry asked the Civil Aviation Ministry to ensure random post-arrival Covid testing of two percent of arriving passengers in each international flight at airports from December 24, to minimize the risk of ingress of any new variant of coronavirus in the country.