New Delhi: The Centre on Monday issued norms to be followed by states and union territories while classifying districts into red, orange and green zones. These norms include the number of active cases, doubling and fatality rates, cases per lakh population, etc.
So, at the time of classifying districts/areas into red, orange and green zones, states/UTs will have to ensure that the classification is done on the basis of total active cases, cases per lakh population, doubling rate calculated over a seven-day period, fatality rate, testing ratio (number of tests per lakh population) and sample positivity rate. The threshold for critical level of total active cases will be 200, while the desirable benchmark will be zero or no reported cases over a period of 21 days.
Similarly, for active cases per lakh population, more than 15 will be the critical threshold. In the case of doubling rate calculated over a seven-day period, the critical fence will be less than 14 days while the target with respect to the same will be more than 28 days.
A fatality rate of more than 6 per cent will be considered critical while authorities will be encouraged to target a fatality rate of less than 1 per cent, the new parameters say.
Meanwhile, a testing ratio (number of tests per lakh population) of more than 200 will be ideal while less than 65 will be considered critical. A sample positivity rate of more than 6 per cent is the threshold for critical and less than 2 per cent will be the desirable benchmark.
It is further clarified that a containment operation will be deemed successful only when no case is reported over a period of 28 days from that containment zone. In addition, the ministry has also said that the benchmarks or thresholds for critical and desirable levels are dynamic and may be revised by the Centre as per the evolving situation at the field level.
