Amid growing concerns over a sudden spurt in COVID-19 cases in China and other countries, the Union Health Ministry wrote to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi urging him to ensure that all COVID guidelines are strictly followed during his Bharat Jodo Yatra.
In a letter to Gandhi and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya urged them to use masks and sanitisers and ensure that only those who are vaccinated be allowed to participate.
Mandaviya sent the letter to Congress leaders after three BJP MPs – PP Chaudhary, Nihal Chand and Devji Patel – raised concerns over the spread of coronavirus.
Mandaviya said the three MPs have requested that COVID protocols be strictly followed during the foot march and only those who are vaccinated be allowed to participate. The MPs have also requested the Union minister to ensure that participants are isolated before and after taking part in the march.
In his letter, Mandaviya requested Gandhi and Gehlot to consider postponing the Yatra in “national interest” if adherence to COVID protocols cannot be followed keeping in view concerns around public health.
The Yatra that started from Kanyakumari on September 7 has so far covered Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. It entered Haryana from Rajasthan this morning.
The three MPs, in their letter on December 20, mentioned how the risk of COVID spread has “increased” as people from other states are coming to Rajasthan to take part in the march and claimed that symptoms have shown up in many of them after the participation.
They also pointed out how Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu contracted COVID virus after going back following participation in the event, PTI reported.
Congress says BJP afraid of Bharat Jodo Yatra
Congress leader Adhira Ranjan Chowdhury hit out at the BJP saying that the party is afraid of Bharat Jodo Yatra’s growing popularity.
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram also slammed the BJP over the letter and said, “I haven’t seen the letter but what are the COVID protocols today? We don’t seem to be having any enforceable COVID protocols in any other public gatherings. Why this sudden attention to Bharat Jodo Yatra if not that it is rankling the BJP?”
Centre’s big review meet on COVID
Meanwhile, Mandaviya will review the COVID-19 situation in the country today in view of a spurt in cases in some countries such as Japan, South Korea, Brazil, China and the US.
The secretaries of health and Ayush ministries, Department of Pharmaceuticals and Department of Biotechnology, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Director General Rajiv Bahl, Member (Health) of NITI Aayog V K Paul and National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (NTAGI) Chairman N L Arora and other senior officials will attend the meeting.
The Union health ministry on Tuesday urged all states and Union territories to ramp up the whole genome sequencing of positive samples to keep track of newer variants.
In a letter to states and UTs, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said such an exercise will enable timely detection of newer variants, if any, circulating in the country and will facilitate undertaking requisite public health measures.
