Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday said the second COVID-19 wave isn't over yet and there is also a strong possibility of third wave to hit in a few weeks and hence, easing the curbs in a rush would prove to be unwise. He was talking to the district collectors of Raigad, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur and Hingoli districts in a televised meeting.
"Although different levels of restrictions have been set for the districts, the local administration has to decide on the restrictions based on the actual situation. Depending on the level, the citizens are can do all their daily chores following the rules. However, if the areas get crowded, the infection may increase and the situation may worsen," said Uddhav. "Study the contagion in your city or district and do not reopen in a hurry," he added.
The Chief Minister also directed the health department to provide an adequate supply of oxygen, medicines and other essential medical supplies to remote and rural areas amid concerns over the third COVID-19 wave.
Meanwhile, Chief Secretary Sitaram Kunte said that the situation in the above seven districts is a matter of concern. Of these, 3 districts are in Konkan, 3 in Western Maharashtra and one in Marathwada. He said that emphasis would be laid on large-scale testing, tracing, and vaccination and the necessary facilities would be provided to the districts in this regard. The Chief Secretary directed to increase RT-PCR testing and implement the containment measures more strictly in the slums.
Dr. Sanjay Oak and Dr. Shashank Joshi of the Task Force said that the number of tests needs to be increased in all the seven districts. "The symptoms of this virus are also changing. It is very important to remove the misconceptions in the minds of the citizens about vaccination and motivate them. In some cases, curbs will have also to be tightened," they said.
Besides, the government is also worried sick after cases of the new Delta Plus variant were detected in the state. The new variant has been classified as a variant of concern (VOC). Delta Plus cases have been found in Maharashtra's Ratnagiri and Jalgaon.
