Big crowds without masks in hill stations a matter of concern, says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said it is a matter of concern that big crowds are thronging hill stations and market areas without masks and social distancingDuring an interaction with chief ministers of eight NorthEastern states through video conferencing the prime minister also said the vaccination drive needs to be continuously ramped up to combat the third wave of the pandemicThe virtual meeting was attended by chief ministers of Assam Nagaland Tripura Sikkim Manipur Meghalaya Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram as also by UnionHome Minister Amit Shah and Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya among othersModi urged people not to compromise on Covid19 protocols to prevent a third wave of coronavirusIt is true that tourism and business have been greatly affected due to Corona But today I will say with great emphasis that it is not right to have huge crowds in hill stations markets without masks Modi saidAlso read Covid19 At 31443 India records least new cases in 118 days says Health MinistryWe all need to work together to stop the third wave of Covid19 pandemic he saidEmphasizing the need to keep an eye on every variant of the coronavirus he said experts are constantly studying how troubling the virus could be after mutations but in such a dynamic situation prevention and treatment are very importantWe have to move forward by improving the infrastructure related to testing and treatment For this recently the cabinet has also approved a new package of Rs 23000 crore Every state in the North East can take help from this package to strengthen its health infrastructure Modi saidThe prime minister said the Covid19 situation was worrisome in some districts of NorthEast and urged the chief ministers to stay alert and act fast to check the further spread of the virusThe PM said stricter steps were needed at the microlevel to check the virus spread and called for greater emphasis on microcontainment zonesWe need to continue accelerating our vaccination drive he added While most parts of the country have seen a steady decline in the Covid19 numbers the northeast region has been a cause of concern with the number of cases either rising or not falling in line with the nationwide trend experts have notedThis 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