Centre extends Covid-19 restrictions till February 28

The Central Government on Thursday extended the existing Covid19 related restrictions in the country till February 28 in view of the rising cases of Covid19 and Omicron variantsMinistry of Home Affairs MHA issued the order directing all the states and the Union Territories UTs to instruct their local and district administrations to promptly take containment measures against the threat of the Omicron variant based on their own assessment of the situation Taking evidencebased Covid19 containment measures at the district and local level as conveyed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare MoHFW the MHA order mentioned that Covid restrictions will remain in force till February 28 2022In exercise of the powers conferred under Section 1021 of the Disaster Management Act 2005 the undersigned hereby directs that the Order of the Ministry of Home Affairs of even number dated December 27 2021 to ensure compliance to the normative framework for taking evidencebased Covid19 containment measures at district and local level as conveyed vide Ministry of Health and Family Welfare MoHFW dated December 21 2021 will remain in force upto February 28 2022 the order mentionedThe order was issued when India logged 286384 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of Covid19 cases to 40371500 according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Thursday As per the order containment measures have been extended up to February 28 Due to the current COVID wave led by the new variant Omicron there has been a steady increase in the number of COVID cases in the country and the active cases have increased to over 22 lakhs Though a majority of active cases are recovering fast and a low percentage of cases are in hospitals it is still a matter of concern that 407 districts in 34 States and UTs are reporting a positivity rate of more than 10 per cent the order saidTherefore looking at the current trends of the Covid virus the order said there is a need to exercise caution and vigilance Against this background the order issued by Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said I would like to reiterate that all the statesUTs must observe all precautions and not let the guard down Based on the normative framework mentioned in the MoHFW dated December 21 2021 and assessment of the situation localdistrict administration should continue to take prompt and appropriate containment measures The order directs imposition and lifting of local curbs or restrictions dynamic and based on the case positivity and hospitalisation status at the local levelIt also asked to emphasise that there should be a continued focus on the fivefold strategy TestTrackTreatVaccination and adherence to COVID Appropriate Behaviour The state enforcement machinery should strictly enforce the norms of COVID Appropriate Behaviour wearing of face masks and maintaining safe social distancing in all public areasgatherings the order further readsFurther states and UTs are advised to continue to hold regular media briefings to disseminate the right information and to discourage any misinformation on new variants of concern It is also urged to issue necessary directions to the districts and all other local authorities concerned to take necessary measures for prompt and effective management of Covid19 strict compliance with various advisories issued by the MoHFW on the new VOC and strict enforcement of Covid Appropriate BehaviourThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever