PM’s remarks at meeting with CMs of all states and UTs to take stock of the COVID-19 situation

• All of you have made a number of important points while assessing the seriousness of the present situation, and made a number of necessary suggestions.
• It was very natural that special discussions have been held with those states where the mortality rate is high and where the corona spread is gaining momentum.
• But the rest of the states can also have very good suggestions. So I would urge you to convey to me any positive suggestions that are necessary so that they are effective in formulating some strategy.
• It is also clear from the presentation made by the Health Secretary on behalf of the Government of India that a challenging situation is developing once again.
• The situation is very alarming in some states. In such a situation, it is very important to improve the governance system.
• I can understand that this year-long battle can also lead to fatigue and laxity in the system. But we should emphasise strengthening our governance system for the next two-three weeks.
• Friends, While reviewing the situation today, there are some issues which are very evident and we need to pay special attention to them.
• First, the country has crossed the peak witnessed during the first wave and this time the growth rate is faster than ever.
• Secondly, several states, including Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, have also crossed the peak during the first wave.
• The numbers are growing in some more states. I think it is a matter of serious concern for all of us.
• And thirdly, this time people have become much more casual than before. The administration also appears to be sluggish in most of the states.
• In such a situation, this sudden rise in corona cases has added to the woes. It is necessary to work on a war footing again to prevent the spread of corona.
• Friends, Despite all these challenges, we have better experience and resources than before, and now we have vaccines.
• Along with public participation, our hardworking doctors and health workers, health-care staff have helped in handling the situation and they continue to do so.
• All of you are expected to use your earlier experiences effectively. Just imagine what was the situation last year.
• We didn’t have testing labs. The availability of masks was also a matter of concern and there were no PPE kits.
• And the only way we could escape at that time was lockdown, so that we could ramp up arrangements as fast as possible and that strategy was very beneficial.
• We could create arrangements and resources and increase our own capability. We got whatever was available in the world and used them during the lockdown period.

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(The views expressed are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the position of the organisation)