New Delhi: With COVID-19 cases rising in Kerala, adequate steps should be taken to contain the inter-state spread of the infection, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Wednesday as he urged Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to increase the pace of vaccination in border districts.
In a telephonic conversation on Wednesday with the health ministers of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, Mandaviya reviewed the COVID-19 situation in these states, a health ministry statement said.
Due to the rising cases in Kerala, the Union Health Minister discussed matters related to COVID-19 management in those areas of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, which border Kerala.
Highlighting the need to take adequate steps to contain the inter-state spread of COVID-19, Mandaviya requested the respective health ministers of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to increase the pace of vaccination in the districts bordering Kerala, the statement said.
The Government of India has been at the forefront of the fight against the COVID19 pandemic. Vaccination forms an integral component of the five-point strategy to fight the pandemic (including Test, Track, Treat and COVID Appropriate Behaviour), the statement added.
The health minister also reviewed the supply and availability of Covid-19 related essential medicines in the country.
During the review, it was noted that sufficient stocks of all the essential medicines are available, a Health Ministry statement said.
Raw materials for these drugs are also available in enough quantities.
The strategic buffer stock has been created for eight drugs and all of these are available in the country. The drugs are Tocilizumab, Methyl Predinisolone, Enaxopirin, Dexamethasone, Remdesivir, Amphotericin B Deoxycholate, Posaconazole and Intravenous Immunoglobilin (IVIG), the statement said.
Senior officials of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare were present in the review meeting.
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