Amid rising cases of influenza and Covid-19, the government on Saturday said that countrywide mock drills will be conducted on April 10-11.
A joint advisory issued by the Union Health Ministry and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) read that both public and private health facilities in all districts are likely to take part in the exercise to assess the availability of medicines, hospital beds, medical equipment, and medical oxygen.
The full specifics of the mock drill will be revealed to the states during the virtual conference on March 27, the advisory said.
According to Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary, Department of Health & FW Ministry, there has been a gradual increase in COVID-19 cases in India since mid-February 2023, with the majority of cases reported in a few states. Due to widespread COVID-19 vaccination coverage, hospitalisation and mortality rates remain low, but public health efforts must be redoubled to contain the surge.
He also recommended states to keep an eye on the changing etiologies of influenza-like sickness and severe acute respiratory illness. The most common subtypes of influenza A (H1N1) and A (H3N2) are currently circulating. COVID-19 and influenza are both easily avoided through easy public health measures, and the Ministry of Health has developed co-infection management guidelines.
"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," the advisory stated.
As of today, the majority of active COVID-19 cases in the country have been reported by a few states, including 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).
"While the rates of hospitalization and death due to the disease remain low, largely because of the significant coverage achieved in terms of COVID-19 vaccination rates by all states and UTS, this gradual rise in cases needs reinvigorated public health actions to contain the surge," the advisory said.
The Union Ministry of Health has already developed thorough guidelines for managing COVID-19 co-infection with other seasonal epidemic-prone diseases.
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